


Twinkle

by Frogman417



Category: Teen Titans (Animated Series), Teen Titans (Comics), Teen Titans - All Media Types
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Evil, Alternate Universe - Teen Titans (Animated Series) Setting, Angst, F/M, Fluff, Romance, Smut, Villains to Heroes, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-03
Updated: 2019-08-13
Packaged: 2020-01-01 13:04:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 23,764
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18334952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Frogman417/pseuds/Frogman417
Summary: Garfield Wilson has lived with his adoptive father, Slade, since his parents died. Finally, after 5 years, Slade is sending him out to try and take down his rivals, the Teen Titans. How will a dark and mistreated Garfield react to them upon meeting them? How will he deal with their bright alien bringing a shine of positivity and joy to his life that he had hidden from him behind angst and abuse?Explicit Rating for Violence and Sexual Themes later on.





	1. Prologue

My name is Garfield Logan Wilson. I use to be a normal kid, living with my parents and going with them as they traveled around the world. I believe they were scientists? That or they just had a strange obsession with nature, so much so they made it their entire life. Regardless, I loved them. They kept me safe, I loved observing the wild life in their rovers and while they aren't exactly fighting tough competition, they were the best thing I have ever had.

But... it all started with some green monkey. Weird, right? Me, being the special kind of dumbass I am, climbed up a tree to try and... pet it, maybe? I was 10, your brain doesn't exactly function all that well at that age. But to move on, it bit me. Instead of Rabies, I got something called Sakutia. And it was killing me.

Any other day, I wished it did. But we'll go into why that is later. My father, good man, managed to save my life. Mutated my genes that infected me and managed to make the virus non-deadly. The catch? I turned green and I could transform into animals.

Life went on surprisingly as usual from there, that is until..

My parents were boating along a river through a tropical jungle, taking photographs of the scenery. I was along with them, enjoying myself like a kid's suppose to. But we didn't scout out the river's path fully before deciding to go boating on it and as it turns out, there was a massive waterfall at the end of it. The rushing water was too strong to swim through and land was too far away to make any sort of Olympic leap to safety.

I... managed to escape. Again, another scenario where I wished I had just died. Transforming into a bird, I managed to fly to safety where I watched my parents and their boat fall down the waterfall.

I never found their bodies. And I never will. Who knows where their carcasses are now, found by locals, devoured by predators, vanished into thin air? It doesn't matter to me. All I knew when I saw their bodies crash into the out-pointed stones of the plunge, as well as crashing into the water several stories below, is that my life might as well have been over like theirs.

But it wasn't.

Slade Wilson, my... father saved me. And that's the last time you'll hear me say his name.

He never told me, but he was, and still is, a deadly assassin that traveled the world and made his money by killing people. And he just so happened to be in Lamumba on one of his hits when he encountered a green, sobbing mess. He took me in, and that's where my life began again.

He was kind enough when he was first taking me in. Was it a charade to get me to trust him? If it was, it worked. I thought things would go back to normal, if that was even possible. I could live as a normal kid with a newfound father. But soon, I had to learn how to fight. Guns, swords, knives, axes, and as my claws grew in, he molded me into a master of all of them. And once he found out I could transform into animals? He'd have me go days and days on without rest until I could beat even the best of fighters in each of my almost unlimited list of forms.

Oh, but it didn't end there. He made sure that any chance I had of being 'normal' was evaporated over the years. I ate, and still eat, nothing but raw meat. But at least those were varied, pretty sure I've eaten the meat of every species at least once, including humans. They all tasted awful and I vomited it all up in the earlier days. Now? I'm pretty sure I can eat  _anything_  without even a second thought. And I mean anything.

When I first gained my 'powers', I turned into a vegetarian, as eating animals just felt... wrong then. It was cannibalism. But that didn't stop him. He forced the meat of the very animals I could transform into down my throat until I grew, not even to like it, but to tolerate it. Even now, I take no sort of pleasure in meat, it's simply a chewy chunk of some unlucky animal that I have to gobble down in order to stay alive.

Sunlight was a rarity. I used to think when he cracked open the dark-tinted window in my cellar, it was an accident. But thinking about it now, maybe he was just giving me false hope of things ever getting better for me. A light at the end of an endless tunnel. A single star on a cloudy night.

Oh, did I mention the cellar? That's putting it lightly.

A dark, stone room with not a soft spot in its unbearably small space. The only thing with color in it was a thick wooden pole that had a chain wrapped around it and a hook. Why was that there? Well, to restrain me like a dog during the night, of course! He... never sleeps, he has security cameras all over the goddamn place, not to mention traps and even bodyguards waiting for me to foolishly try to escape to take me down, and yet.. he still makes sure I stay right where he wants me to during the dark.

The hook on the chain attaches to my collar like a leash. Yes, I have a collar and I will not talk on it anymore. The chain isn't more than a foot long, not like there's much space to walk around, hardly even letting me lay my head fully onto the fucking ground, let alone get any sort of comfortable rest.

He never told me what he does as a job, but I caught on rather quickly. A guy goes out with army-grade weapons and returns with a bag of cash so many times, you kinda catch on. How he taught me to fight, both with blades, guns and with my bare hands, he wasn't just some karate instructor and I knew that he had to have acquired his wealth somehow.

I had begged him multiple times to let me JOIN him on these assassinations, just so I could go out and do... something that wasn't constant training. Of course, he declined, saying something about him working best 'alone'. And I knew right away that was bullshit, but it took a considerable amount of time before I realized just WHY that was bullshit.

While I was locked in a goddamn cellar, tossing around pebbles that were littered on the ground and eating any poor spider that decided to make the prison their home, he was doing 'business' in Jump City.

My father is a very secretive man, never telling me the place of where we lived, but not long ago, he finally told me. Jump City. Some place in New York that you could hardly point out on a map. Keep in mind, I had lived with him with several years, I believe it's reached the 5th year now? And only a few days ago do I actually know where I goddamn live. Not that it matters, since it's not like I was going out and exploring the place.

But, to the point. He acquired an ally by the name of 'Cinderblock', a giant stone monster with incredible strength and a pebble for a brain. He was his first real tool to commit local crimes while he either plotted or went out of state and country to murder people. It went rather smooth for a few months until my father realized he needed more than just him.

Cinderblock then stole a poor fella from prison, enclosed in a water tank, to forever sleep. Lucky fuck, ain't he? Well there's a reason he was always asleep. Something to do with his cells or something has made him a mutant, a bit like me in a way. Whenever he's awake, he transforms into a monstrous monster, like Cinderblock. But instead of being made of stone, it's sludge. Putrid, vile sludge. Got a whiff of it after my father had some on his boot, and it's disgusting.

The two of them were good, but... still not enough for him. So he goes and acquires HUMAN help, because apparently I'm not a human. H.I.V.E. Academy is a training ground for young supervillains disguised as a school led by Brother Blood. The two of them have talked on occasion, but Mr. Blood usually just lets his mistress do the talking while he's busy managing the 'school'.

The three top 'students' of the academy then began to do crimes for him. Going by the names of Jinx, Gizmo and Mammoth, I don't have a clue just what any of them look like or what they do, but apparently they were powerhouses of Jump City for a brief point, taking down police forces and... other crimefighters(I'll get to that), but were eventually defeated, and ever since then, went on to do independent crimes while my father moved onto a different target.

Alright, this is where I talk about why I'm even talking about this in the first place.

I am finally being sent out to do my father's bidding. After half a decade of training and numerous failed experiments, I am now allowed to go out into the city and do what he tells me to. Be it petty crimes like robbing jewelry stores, terrorizing local establishments or even being used as muscle to teach whoever my father wants me to a lesson. Police aren't a concern of mine. What my concern is?

_**The Teen Titans.** _

Five teenage superheroes that operate in Jump City and act as its local guardians. I have heard of them a few times, as they have become the source of my father's interests and frustrations. But I've never seen one of them, let alone what they can do in combat, so I'll just recite the files my father has on them.

* * *

 

_Name: Dick Grayson_

_Alias: **Robin**_

_History: Former circus worker with his parents. Parents were assassinated, which was then staged as an accident after their ropes snapped. Was sent into adoptive care until Batman of Gotham adopted him and trained him to become his sidekick. Growing older and getting into disputes with his adoptive father, he ran off, eventually coming to Jump City and forming the Teen Titans after a fately encounter with his three future teammates._

_Powers: N/A_

_Abilities: Top detective skills, master of hand-to-hand combat, very athletic and acrobatic_

_Weapons: Bo Staff, Birdarangs(Shock), Grapple Gun, Smoke Balls, Flashbangs, Ammunition Discs, Trackers_

_Armor: Kevlar and Titanium-enforced Bodysuit, Metal-Plated Boots_

_Weaknesses: Human Body, Human limitations in all skills, Risk-happy, can get Obsessed with targets and even seem unstable at times_

_Strategy: Robin is a peak athlete, but is still only human. He's durable, but not invulnerable. Strong, but not herculean. Fast, but not blazing. Mental fortitude is shaky, easy to get upset. Not incredibly accurate with his ranged weapons. Has very close bond with Starfire, exploit this. Not very difficult to overpower, though technically skilled and fast. Wear him out before going in close. Has shown mercy to foes in the past, try and fool him._

* * *

_Name: Koriand'r_

_Alias: **Starfire**_

_History: Crash-landed on Earth while being captured by aliens. Was eventually saved by her three future teammates._

_Powers: Superhuman Strength/Durability, Flight, Tamaranean Psychology, Superhuman Agility, Energy Projection(Eyes, Hands), Radiation Immunity, Lip-to-Lip Language Assimilation_

_Abilities: Hand-to-Hand Combat, Sword and Shield skills_

_Weapons: Starbolts(Eyes, Hands)_

_Armor: Tamaranean Durability, Can use Energy Projection as Shield_

_Weaknesses: Powers based on Emotion, Naive, Extremely protective of teammates, Mentally sensitive_

_Strategy: Starfire is physically the strongest and most durable of the Titans. Can be taken down if hit by surprise. Overly protected of teammates, put them in danger and she will risk herself to save them. Very close bond with Robin, exploit this. Speed on ground seems to be human level, get her grounded. Starbolts come from Eyes and Hands. Blind her and/or restraint her hands. Very naive, won't be difficult to fool and take advantage of._

* * *

_Name: Victor Stone_

_Alias: **Cyborg**_

_History: Mother died in car crash, Father saved him by turning more than half of his body into cybernetics. Ridiculed and insulted, Victor ran away, eventually finding his future three other teammates in Jump City._

_Powers: Superhuman Strength/Durability, Superhuman Genius, Psychic (near)Immunity_

_Abilities: Hand-To-Hand Combat, Advanced Warrior Skills, Mechanical Genius_

_Weapons: Sonic Cannon(Both Arms), Mini-Rocket Launchers on Soles of Feet, Rocket Launchers on Shoulders, Laser Beam(Chest), Trackers, Computer System_

_Armor: Titanium Cybernetic Body, Detachable Limbs_

_Weaknesses: Partially exposed head, Requires Power, Electric Overcharge, Mobility_

_Strategy: Cyborg is perhaps the smartest of the Titans. Robotic limps strong but not unbreakable, try breaking them off using brute force. Limited mobility, easy to outspeed and outmaneuver. Power Charge can be drained and turn him off, try and find something that can absorb his charge. His body can get overcharged, resulting in shortages and outages._

* * *

_Name: **Raven**_

_Alias: N/A_

_History: Daughter of demonic overlord, Trigon. Was raised in realm called Azarath, which was eventually overtaken and destroyed by Trigon. Escaped to Earth, where she eventually found her three future teammates in Jump City._

_Powers: Dark/Shadow Control, Astral Projection, Telekinesis, Telekinetic Constructs/Force-Fields/Teleportation/Flight, Levitation, Empathy, Spell-Casting, Healing_

_Abilities: Master of Spells, Multilingual, Hand-To-Hand Combat_

_Weapons: N/A_

_Armor: N/A_

_Weaknesses: Anger, Can't cast spells when unable to speak, Relies on nearby objects as weapons_

_Strategy: Raven is the most powerful of the Titans. Only decent in hand-to-hand combat, should be easy to overpower and take down. Spells depend on her chants, try to gag her or close off her mouth. Anger, when angry enough, she loses all control of her power and any sort of strategy. Be cautious when approaching this, as Raven seems to have no problem killing in this form. It is recommended to have some way to restraint or to overpower the demon's dark side when doing this. Can be manipulated at times, lacks someone she is truly close with. Can be used to try and get close to her._

* * *

A fun bunch they seem like.

My father previously tried to turn their leader, Robin, into his apprentice, and almost succeeded by using the safety of his teammates against him, but his plans eventually fell through and Robin escaped him.

This... really bothered him. Whoever this Robin is, it seems my father had a great interest in him. I've heard him say that he sees a lot of himself in the boy, and how he would've loved to make the boy as powerful as he could've been.

As much as he is a piece of... crap, I have no one else in my life. What did that boy have that I didn't? He was the apprentice of some superhero? I can turn into goddamn animals! I've lived with him for five years and still he looked for some caped crusader to make his apprentice instead of me! Why couldn't I have that validity?

But... moving on, Father eventually moved his eye to a young teenager by the name of Terra. The Titans found her first and took her in, but it was clear right away she didn't hold much control over her earth-bending powers. And after a confrontation between the two where he tried to convince her to join him, Terra ended up accidentally collapsing a mineshaft down ontop of her, killing her. Looking at pictures of her, she was definitely pretty. Seemed she had a troubled past as well, with her family and friends calling her a 'witch' because of her powers and even tried to kill her because of it. Life is... messed up that way.

And now, over a year later... finally, he chose me.

It... sucks being a last resort, but I'm just glad that I can go out on my own now, even if it's under watch. To put to the test my true skill and to show Father why he should've chose ME in the first place! I'm set to grab the Titans' attention by infiltrating a laboratory to steal a mechanical staff, said to have an explosive tip and even have electric properties. Easy to see why Father would want that.

But.. I guess that's it. For the first time in years, I'm finally looking forward to something. And I'll show those Titans a thing or two along the way. My father isn't perfect, but.. he's the only one who has given me anything since my parents died. If he has a problem with them, I have a problem with them.

_**Watch out Teen Titans, Garfield Wilson is coming!** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/U: Hey there, haven't really seen anyone do this concept(with Beast Boy at least), so I thought I'd give it a shot! Was debating adding a 5th Titan just because, but changed it last second. Let me know if I should add one more in there. It'd probably be Kid Flash, but I'm open to suggestions.
> 
> Also the whole story isn't going to be told like this, this is just for the introduction, to sorta tell you what's different about Gar from the Teen Titans canon and what small changes have been documented.
> 
> But yeah, not sure when the first chapter will be up, but it'll contain lots of fighting, that's for sure.
> 
> Also it's a BBStar fic because I love BBStar. If an idea comes along in my mind where it'd best fit BBRae, I'll do that.


	2. Chapter One : First Meeting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/U: Quick note, I'll be writing Garfield and the Titans as 18+ for the sake of what the story is going to contain(aka violence and sexual themes). With that out of the way, enjoy!

It was a cold night, though that was nothing new to the man walking along the sidewalk, green eyes examining the sky above him. It was almost a perfect black, the small blend of ocean blue and even a deep violet mixed in with the colorless sky, coupled with white shining stars that held hints of gold in their gleam. The man had occasionally seen the sky through his small window, though he had to admit that it was far more gorgeous to look at without the restriction of fogged glass blocking his view. The stars were much clearer, even if they were just endless specks light-years away. The silver moon looked like it was yawning, holding a crescent shape and letting even more glistening mini suns shine his path.

Garfield Wilson couldn't help but take in the scenery. He was on a mission, to catch the attention of the infamous Teen Titans and let them know just which new 'baddie' was in town. And how would he go about doing that? Well by stealing a high-powered battle staff with both explosive and electric capabilities, something that Robin would drool over in comparison to his little metal Bo Staff.

The laboratory it was being held at was highly protected, with alarms being set up on all potential openings, and motion-detected lasers inside the establishment should an intruder get past those. Enough to scare off plenty of potential thieves with the threat of the police coming over, let alone the Titans. Good for Garfield however who wanted them to come to him, plus he'd get a pretty staff along with the fact.

Slade had scouted out the place previously and was able to easily identify each security measure the place took when it was closed off, and it turns out that security guards usually patrolled the outer entrances of the lab, but only on weekends. Likely due to financial restrictions placed onto the owner of the research facility by the mayor, it was well known that he didn't want Jump City to become a police state, instead relying simply on local police forces and the Teen Titans to protect the place. Rather foolish however, given the numerous superpowered villains patrolling the place, looking for any opening to make themselves bank. But politics were a very brutal game, and if Mr. "Say what the public wants me to say" wants to secure votes, he'll prohibit local establishment and non-government funded facilities have any sort of bodyguards patrolling.

The owner still used guards however, just on weekends and on non-busy police days, whatever the hell that meant. So easily enough, the heist of the staff was simply scheduled on a day that security guards weren't there, aka a nice Wednesday night.

Garfield soon came across the address given to him, surrounded by other research facilities, though their research seemed to be based more in medical purposes. Made the changeling wonder just why this laboratory in particular were crafting military grade weaponry. Unless the explosive tip of the staff actually blew up asprin and bandages of course, science was a mystery.

It was a wide white building, looking to be around two and a half stories tall. Black tinted windows were placed within 10 feet of each other along the side of the building, where Garfield suspected that those were where the workers and their desks were at. The upper level of the building held no windows and was much wider in space than the lower level, so he assumed not only was that where the lab workers held their experiments and research, but also where the staff was held.

Speaking of the apprentice, his mutated green skin, while starting out as a grass green color, had slowly dimmed down to a paler color that more resembled old moss rather than anything lively. Plenty of years living in a cellar will do that. His jawline was strong and firm, a pointed chin that looked like it could cut through steel pointing down to his torso. His hair had grown out all the way down to his neck, and puberty treated him well in the facial hair department, with some sick sideburns that stuck out, similar to that of another Logan across universes.

Despite his poor living conditions, Garfield certainly didn't look like it. He was still fairly short, only around 5'7" to 5'9" on a good day, but he had put on a decent chunk of weight. He wasn't a bodybuilder, but his muscles were well defined and his torso was almost rock-solid, with his six-pack being his most prized possession on his body. Around 180lbs of muscle, he certainly wasn't no pushover, along with his naturally enhanced strength and durability. No Superman, and he wasn't sure just what his limit in strength was, but he was confident in saying he was stronger than any other human around.

But he didn't just have to rely on his pure strength, being Slade's son did come with benefits, and oh boy did he have some weapons to spare. A Bowie knife, numerous flashbangs, a Grapple Gun, smokeballs, even a few sticky bombs, all strapped to a utility belt tied around his waist. Dressed in a black jumpsuit that resembled the outfit of a Doom Patrol uniform, the purple was replaced with the bronze-orange that was painted over one half of Slade's mask. Armored gaunlets were wrapped around his wrists, made of reflective titanium designed to block just about anything, including energy blasts, which just so happened to be the primary weapon of one of his adversaries in Starfire.

Of course, he still had his collar, gray and made of steel as well, dogtags hung off the front, one with the same 'S' as on his headband, along with the other one having his 'new name' in Garfield Wilson craved into the metal. To wield the staff and not get electrocuted, he wore special-protective gloves, the palms of them made of an absorbive rubber that would, at best, tickle his hands should the sparks of the weapon ever come in contact with them. At the back of his neck was where he would store the staff, a natural sheath that was perfect for any sword and staff, and was also what was used to hook onto the wooden pillar in his 'room'.

Rather than going through the front door, Garfield used his grapple gun to fire a zipline right onto the roof of the second floor. Climbing up, there wasn't any sort of vent or glass roof like he assumed, perking frustration out of the changeling before just deciding to blast right into the place. He had bombs to spare, and besides, might as well not have that first zipline be a waste and make a grand entrance.

Unhooking one of the sticky bombs from his belt, he planted it on no specific part of the roof, giving the thumb that was being used to hold the explosive a smooch before doing so. Gar pushed the red button atop the bomb and quickly ran a safe distance away, not even bothering to shield his eyes or plug his ears, simply watching the bomb tick and tick and tick before...

***BOOM***

Immediately, the explosion triggered the laboratory's alarms, flashing red lights going throughout the entire establishment, which was going to be almost unavoidable regardless if he wanted the attention or not. But once the smoke and dust cleared, Garfield jumped down, immediately greeted with the typical white layout of the place, colorless walls and colorless floors making for a rather bland room.

But he didn't much care for decorations, he was more focused on the glass case that held the staff, though the shapeshifter suspected it wasn't any sort of simple glass that could be broken with a sneeze, especially so with the gleaming metal that outlined the container. Designed to hold out  _average_  humans, Garfield certainly didn't see himself as one of those, and thus he decided to test his strength out.

Cracking his knuckles, he lifted up the prized possession, the staff itself around 4 feet long, sleek silver design with one of the tips holding a black rounded tip which he could only assume to be the explosive tip. And the other end held a black button, he could assume that's how you turned on the electric properties of the glorified stick.

The cylinder container had plenty of buttons on the top of it, as well as a hatch that was locked up and wouldn't bulge, even as he tried to rip it open. Obviously there was suppose to be some sort of password he could enter that would open it up, but with the alarms going off, that also meant that the lab computers were shut down completely until the security system was manually turned off. And like hell was he going to try and figure all of that out.

So, Garfield went after what seemed the most vulnerable, the glass. Holding the container up with one arm, he lifted his other, pointing his elbow out and after a deep breath, slammed it down. Painful? Definitely, but the glass showed signs of cracking, and thus he bit his tongue and slammed the sharp of his arm down once again, and after a third attempt, the protective cover was broken open, and the changeling from there tore the rest of it open, tossing the shattered glass and buzzing metal to the side for his prize.

Placing his hands firmly on the pads of the staff, he gave the thing a few swings, being surprisingly heavy for its scrawny size, but he wasn't about to back down from the challenge of wielding the thing. As for his escape... might as well put the baby to the test. Finding the wall that faced out towards the street, he held the staff back before thrusting it forward, letting the explosive tip make wreckage of the pure white walls, clearing out a rather sizeable hole in the building.

"Nice." He remarked, looking rather proud of his find before actually looking out the hole he created and seeing... a police car? The station was across town, how the hell were police here already? It was just a stray vehicle however, and of course, Garfield immediately thought of the gas station just a block away. Cop was probably harassing some clerk when he heard the alarm go off.

And speaking of the cop... where was he? The changeling could tell right away that he wasn't in his car, even through the tinted windows and there wasn't anywhere that he could hide behind with the way he parked it over the sidewalk.

And just as he connected the dots of where the pig could possibly be, the cock of a pistol rung in his ears, along with a deep-voiced demand. "Drop the weapon!" The male yelled out, though right away Gar could hear that he wasn't fully confident in his words. Why would he be, he was a loaded out green man with some stiff muscles and a deadly staff in his hands. Not even turning around, the shapeshifter just perked his brow and kept his same exact stance. "I just want the Teen Titans, I don't want to kill you now." His monotone voice remarked, and only half of that was a lie. He DID want the Teen Titans to come to him, but there was a certain part of him that was curious of just what killing someone felt like and this shaky cop might just be the perfect candidate.

"Drop it now, man!" The officer seemingly completely ignored his words, once again making a nervous demand, trying to hide it behind a loud yell, but the apprentice could easily make out the emotions in his voice. He was scared, and there was a tiny part of him that felt bad for the guy, but then again, he was also a complete dumbass entering the place without any sort of backup in sight. And he even tried to let the suit off, giving him a chance to get out of here so he could wait for the Titans, but nope.

The station would be better off with someone different wearing that badge, Garfield ultimately decided, but.. the cop did have the advantage right now. Any sort of sudden movement and he could catch himself with a bullet in him. So a quick plan was arranged, and the shapeshifter slowly and steadily raised his arms up in surrender, the staff being held in between his index fingers and thumbs, dangling temptingly. "Come and take it."

After a few seconds of silence, Logan eventually did hear the officer slowly step forward towards him. Slow, hesitant steps that further showed just how fearful he was. Each little tap made the changeling more eager, just waiting. "No sudden movements, you hear me?" The cop ordered, and Gar silently responded with a slow and sure nod, pressing his thumbs firm on the staff while his pinkie waited for just the right moment to move.

Feeling those sweaty fingers placed on the metal of the staff, what came next might've came across as a shock. Literally. A yell of anguish came out of the cop's mouth as the advanced electricity of the staff was turned on by the teenager and burned his hand, and Garfield was quick to react, snatching ahold of the pistol that was previously aimed at the back of his head, making sure that the bullet that was panic fired from the chamber hit the floor several feet away. Holding the staff in one hand, he made quick use of the officer's own pistol, the next two shots fired, both piercing and flying through the forehead of his adversary.

Logan watched as the cop fell, not much like the early, early shows and movies he barely remembered watching as a child. Instead of jumping backyards several feet, his victim kinda fell on himself, the top half of his body slumping downward while his legs gave out on him and collapsed on the ground. Landing on his tailbone first, the rest of the body fell backwards, and a mean sounding  _*thump*_ accompanied the head slamming against the tiled floor.

The officer was around his height, but had a hefty gut on him, his blue police uniform barely holding on around his fat. His arms had hair growing along them, and looking up towards his face, clear blue eyes stared blankly up towards the exposed roof, blood seeping out from the two bullet holes that were above each eyebrow on him. The thing was that... they still seemed alive, though only briefly. Several emotions ran throughout them that interested the changeling. Fear... Confusion... Sorrow... Regret... too many to count before they quickly clouded over and went cross. His mouth was gaped, as if trying to say his final words, but nothing came out, just a small heave, his final breath...

Oddly, Garfield felt... nothing. He expected some sort of high afterwards that motivated him forward, maybe even regret that would shift his opinion on doing this entire job, but... nothing. The dark-skinned officer's body laying lifeless before him didn't do much for him, and even seeing the gushing blood pooling around the back of his head, though if that was from the bullet shots or his head smashing into the tile on his way down was unknown, it all was just something that happened.

The most emotion he felt was actually a bit of disorientation after having those gunshots fired so close to his sensitive ears, using his pinkie to pick at his earlobes as if just murdering that man was an inconvenience for him and his poor eardrums. There was also a bit of confusion, Gar being able to hear some sort of static sounding voice, before realizing that it was coming from the cop's communicator. He couldn't make out the exact words but it seemed like whoever was on the other end of it was urgently asking for his partner's status.  _Sorry fella._  He unapologetically thought to himself, stuffing the freshly fired pistol into one of his holsters before doing the same with the stolen staff, this time securing it in the hole on the back of his collar.

Glancing back at the hole in the wall he made, Garfield walked forward until the tips of his toes hung off the edge, green gaze examining the outerior of the laboratory and finding himself disappointed that the Titans hadn't arrived yet. At least, under the sound of hot rubber grinding over asphlat alerted him to the sight of a blue and silver convertible turning on the block and heading right in his direction. A bit odd, until he recognized the cybernetic look of the blue that perfectly matched the half metal Titan, and looking through the windshield, that just confirmed it. Cyborg.

Pulling his stolen pistol back out of the holster, he took aim at the vehicle, closing one eye and taking a breath before firing off two shots, aimed at the wheels. However, the bullets merely bounced off of them as if they were nothing, and before he could shoot anymore, his gun was enveloped in a black aura and quickly dismantled in front of him. And finally, Gar managed to glance forward just in time to see a shining green ball of energy fly his way, ducking and avoiding it and letting it crash into the desks in the laboratory.

_About time._

The Teen Titans. Cyborg and Robin jumped out of the convertible and stared up at the green changeling, while Starfire and Raven joined them, hovering idly with the same looks of determination in their eyes. And really, this was the first time the apprentice had a chance to get an actual look at the team. Based solely off of descriptions, he had a small idea of just what they looked like, but when face-to-face, it was a whole 'nother thing.

Robin stood in front of the pack, the leader of the group, and his iconic look still remained even after leaving Gotham behind. Domino mask, slicked black hair and a colorful combination of green, yellow and red in his outfit. His jawline was like a reverse pyramid, pointing downward diagonally into a pointed chin. He was rather thin, though his father made sure to tell him that behind his slim build, he held the strength to combat even the strongest of adversaries, including Cinderblock and Mammoth.

Cyborg was easily the biggest of the group, standing well over 6 foot even in his teenage years. Most of his body and head composed of a sleek gray and blue design that seemed extra futuristic. A red eye glowed angrily at him, while a icy blue human eye was squinted, as if he was confused about the appearance of the man he was staring at.  _Have you seen yourself in the mirror, tough guy?_

Raven was probably the most boring to look at. Most of her body was hidden behind a night-sky colored cloak, though he could just make out her thin lips pursed in a frown as she looked upward, along with shapely gray legs that were short enough to make her the smallest of the group. But even at her small size, he knew he had to be careful around her, given her immense power.

And Starfire... god was she was a looker. Flowing autumn-colored hair, tall curvy body that could make any woman jealous, all secured in a revealing purple outfit. Her fists were hidden by two glowing green orbs that increased and decreased in size each second. But the most intriguing thing about the alien was those eyes... A fierce colored green that were like prizeless emeralds, her pupils were wide and shone with almost unbreakable will. And in the darkness of the night, they shone like two mini stars.. the shine of them just so captivating. Hidden behind her will was also a layer of passion and compassion that caused a gentle smirk to cross the face of the changeling. Certainly the most attractive of the Titans and also the most interesting...

"Slade... seems like he found himself a new apprentice." Cyborg's heavy voice was the first to speak, surprisingly unaffected by any of the robotics on him, sounding perfectly normal. Perhaps he still had his lungs underneath all that metal. The human eye of the half robot then widened as his red eye glowed for a split second. "My god. You have Sakutia... how are you still breathing, man?"

"Seems that tech of yours is more advanced than Father described." Garfield first spoke to the Titans, making sure his voice was as sharp and menacing as it could be, finishing his statement with a snarl. However, it seemed that his three companions didn't share the shock of Cyborg's, looking at their friend with a confused look. "Sakutia was a deadly disease most commonly found in animals in Africa, kinda like rabies. Except no one's been able to survive it once they've been infected, since it attacks their cells and mutates them before slowly melting down. It's a slow and painful death, thankfully extremely rare, which makes me question how this guy is alive." Their friend thankfully explained however.

After the medical lesson, Robin was the one who perked up the most, Logan being able to see his eyes widen underneath his black and white mask. "Wait, father? Slade has a son?" He questioned, furrowing his brow as a demanding finger pointed upward. "Slade does not seem like the type to doing the settling and conceive bumgorfs." Starfire thought outloud, looking at Robin with a curious gaze, who seemed more determined than thoughtful at the moment.

Ignoring the word vomit that was whatever the alien just said, Garfield just shook his head, growing more and more bored by the second. And if they weren't going to initiate combat, then he will! Snatching one of his sticky bombs from his belt, he gave the button a quick tap before tossing it like a frisbee in the direction of the Titans, who quickly split up to avoid it, leaving it to stick onto the spare police car on the street, a few idle beeps ticking before eventually the vehicle exploded in epic fashion, fire and car parts flying across the air.

Jumping down from the second story of the laboratory, he was quickly greeted with a charging Robin, who jumped and spun in the air, looking for an overhead kick. Quickly, Garfield caught the metal-plated boot, having to exert some strength in order to hold the bird boy in place, and the look of surprise on the pale teen's face was quite satisfying before the changeling swung him by the ankle, tossing him through one of the windows of the laboratory.

Green starbolts rained down on him soon afterwards, and the apprentice had to jump and spin out of the way of the balls of energy, even using his gauntlets to block one of them before finding himself right in front of the towering Cyborg. Ducking an incoming punch, Garfield tried his hand in giving the robot a punch to the gut, only to find his knuckles ache while his adversary barely moved an inch. "Really man?" Victor questioned him before lifting up a metallic knee, hitting him square in the gut and forcing a heave out of the green teen.

Finding himself getting frustrated early on, especially so after the cybernetic Titan tossed across the street and having to roll out of the way of an alien starbolt once more, Garfield decided to approach things differently now.

As a black-encased mailbox flew in his direction, the changeling decided to introduce his powers into the fight, quickly shifting into a gorilla and turning the flying weapon into rubble with a double fist pound, followed up by a roar. Thankfully his collar and utility belt were designed to endure and grow with his transformations, he still had his weapons at hand should he need them. Hearing Cyborg let out a "Woah!" of surprise, along with seeing the levitating Raven's eyes widen, Garfield went on the attack, jumping up into the air towards the cloaked woman.

She in turn tried to shield herself with her dark powers, but the pure strength of the gorilla was enough to knock her down to the ground regardless, breaking her barrier and causing the changeling to land right atop of her. Shifting back into his human form, he gave a cocky smirk to the empath who had her hood down now, exposing her large violet eyes and short cut hair, along with a red charkra on the center of her forehead. "Azarath Metri-mmph!" Raven began her chant, but Garfield wasn't about to allow that, shoving the side of his hand into her mouth and gagging her while his other hand brought out his Bowie knife.

Before he could do anything with it however, the apprentice found himself knocked several yards away from the demon with a painful burning sensation in his side. Gripping at his hip, he looked upward to find both the beautiful Starfire and menacing Cyborg standing in front of him now.  _Numbers game is no joke._  He thought bitterly to himself, narrowing his eyes as he watched the muscled half-robot transform one of his arms into what looked like a cannon, an almost blinding blue building up in its interior.

Tossing his knife directly into the cannon's gaped opening before it could fire, Garfield transformed into a bear, jumping forward and knocking the staggered Cyborg into a lightpole with one of his powerful paws before turning his attention to the Tamaranean, turning into a fly to avoid one of her punches, before turning back into a human to grab her outstretched arm and judo-throw her over his head.

Pulling out the stolen staff that was stuck to his back, Garfield gripped it nice and tight before turning it on, the odd sensation of the electricity sparkling against his protected palms almost ticklish. More shadow-covered objects were being tossed his way, from lightpoles to tires and even objects from the laboratory, like the desks and chairs that were on the first floor of the establishment. The changeling was quick to react, ducking and swerving out of the way of the smaller and thinner objects and using the explosive tip of the staff to blow up the larger objects, leaving only bits of them to brush against his face.

However, Raven wasn't quite done with him yet, flying forward and landing a quick roundhouse to his jaw while he was still seeking smoke. Staggered, Garfield grunted and turned off the staff momentarily, using it to block the demon's barrage of kicks and palm strikes. She wasn't slow or anything, but in comparison to his sparring partner being Slade? She was an amateur, and her moves were easily predictable. Before long, the villain caught one of the arms that struck forward, holding it firm in between his elbow and his side, and he quickly retaliated with a headbutt square in between her eyebrows.

A cry of pain escaped her mouth, and his forehead could feel the bone it struck down on break under its hit. Satisfied, he then transformed into a kangaroo, using those heavy hitting legs to kick the staggered Raven far and high, right into the exposed hole on the second story of the laboratory. However, he didn't get much time to celebrate, as he once again had to use his staff to deflect a Birdarang that was closed in on his chest.

These Titans did not stay down easily, as once more, Garfield found himself outnumbered, Cyborg managing to tug the knife free from his arm, Starfire flying above and Robin charging forward once more. This would be difficult, as now all three looked to close in on him.

Transforming back into a gorilla, Logan let out a loud yell before using a massive hand to swat at Robin, missing his mark but at least keeping him a safe distance away while he thought up a strategy for the approaching robot. Some sparks were flying from his right arm, which gave the changeling an idea as he blocked another kick from the leader of the group. He just needed a bit of separation from Bird Boy..

Using the explosive tip of the staff, he stabbed down directly at Robin's feet, forcing him to jump backward, just as Cyborg had closed the distance between the two. A wild swing came his way, which Garfield managed to easily dodge before grabbing at the weakened shoulder of the mechanical man with a powerful mitten. A screech followed as the pure strength of the primate allowed him to rip the metal arm clean off of the body of the half-robot. And just in case, Gar quickly shifted back into his human form, turned on the staff and stuck it into the now exposed wiring of Vic.

Sparks and bolts came out as electricity danced along the wires and mechanics of Cyborg, smoke even floating upward from it before eventually, a loud pop was heard from inside his body and the massive half-man fell to the ground, human eye closed.

Starbolts rained down on him now, followed up with several Birdarangs, not all of which Garfield could dodge, eventually knocking him to the ground and causing him to lose his staff as it slid and bounced out of his grasp. He could feel blood run down his side, along with several bruises and burn marks over his chest and back. And he was getting tired, sweat pouring from his hairline down his face and soaking his top.

Looking forward at the two remaining Titans, they didn't look very happy with them either, Starfire's eyes glowing green and an enraged look on Robin's face. No chance they were going to let him get up without being able to knock him back down, with their ranged weapons and his lack of any. He needed just a bit of time to regain his energy, to be able to shift again to finish this...

"Goddamn." Garfield let himself remark, a pained chuckle escaping afterwards, his tongue flopping out of his mouth to wet his lips as he rolled over onto his back, looking forward at the two Titans. "When  **Father**  said you guys were strong, he wasn't lying..." He made sure to put emphasis on 'Father', and looking at the perked eyebrows of Robin and knowing his near obsession with Slade, it seemed that was a good choice as he just stomped forward and stood over the fallen changeling.

Garfield raised his hands up in 'surrender' as his collar was grasped and tugged on, forcing the green apprentice to get face-to-face with the leader. "Who ARE you? What is your father after?" The domino-masked teen interrogated his enemy, a vicious snarl on his face.

"Garfield." Was his simple answer, purposefully leaving his second question up in the air and even teasingly perking his brows as he spoke. "Garfield's the name. Though Logan is.. also acceptable." It was clear frustration was beginning to seep into the bird boy, that grimace of his tightening, as well as the grip on his collar.  _There you go, keep it up.._  Gar enticed in his head, slowly lowering one of his hands down while spreading the fingers on his other as it was raised in defeat.

"Garfield... what's your last name?" Robin then growled, giving his collar a shake while his free hand tightened in anger. "Oh.. wouldn't you love to know.. First name's Garfield, middle name's Logan, that's all you're getting out of me." The changeling answered tauntingly, which only made the leader more frustrated, though he seemed to accept defeat on that matter before moving on.

"What is Slade after?!"

 _Almost.._  Garfield thought, his hand almost to that smoke bomb on his utility belt, his energy returning to him as time went on and he stalled.

"Well, not sure how much concern it is to you, but it actually has to do with your girlfriend there. Starfire, I believe?" The changeling lied slyly, nodding towards the Tamaranean who was standing feet away. He wasn't exactly a good liar, but in his anger-filled state, it seemed that statement was enough to get Robin intrigued, and Starfire herself as well, blinking a few times out of confusion.

"What would Slade want out of me?" She asked, only earning a sigh from Garfield. "I'm not going to tell you that now, really I've said more than I should've." He condescendingly taunted the woman, which only earned him a punch across the jaw from who was ontop of him.  _He really does like her.._  He thought bitterly, feeling blood beginning to pool in his mouth after the hard hit.

"What does he want with-" Robin's question was interrupted by Garfield, who spit his own blood into the face of the bird boy, and before he could retaliate, an explosion of smoke clouded over them both. "Robin!" Starfire shrieked, however she wasn't going to be much help for him as a flashbang suddenly went off just under her feet, blinding her and making her stagger on her feet. The changeling quickly shifted into his gorilla form, grabbing ahold of the face of the leader. Giving it a tight squeeze, so badly wanting to just pop the head of the bitch who managed to win over his father's affection, he instead gave him a punch to the gut, causing him to spit out blood in return, though likely not on purpose like Gar's spit.

Tossing the body of Robin out of the smoke and onto the windshield of the convertible he arrived in, Garfield then leaped forward, cupping his fists and slamming them down atop the disorientated alien, planting her into the road. Slade wanted to send a message alright, and that was exactly what his apprentice was planning on doing. Walking over to his staff which had fallen several feet away from him, Logan grabbed it and walked over to the body of Starfire, body stirring on the ground.

 _Here's your goddamn_  mess- Garfield was about to drive the explosive tip of the staff right onto the face of Starfire, Robin's closest ally and teach him a lesson for having his father choose him, HIM, to be his apprentice over his own damn son, but then, she opened her eyes...

Something in her eyes made him hesitate. She was still disorientated and in clear pain as she could only wriggle on the ground below him as her pupils looked up at him, and yet... he couldn't do it. Garfield WANTED to take away that bird boy's crush, and the perfect opportunity was here to do that, but her eyes shone in a way that he had never seen before. The night stars above them reflected off of her wide pupils, her irises were like emeralds and the shine of the stars made them  _twinkle_  so beautifully. And once the helpless Tamaranean realized the position she was in, emotion screamed at him through her gorgeous gaze. They were silently begging for him not to hurt her anymore, pupils wobbling in fear, which only made the shine in her eyes glitter even more. And even in her scared state, Garfield could make out the pure passion and innocence that laid behind her irises that filled him up with a feeling that he couldn't pinpoint. She.. she didn't deserve this.

His pursuit of revenge slowly evaporated, and instead came in an attraction towards the Titan that he wasn't sure was there before. Sure, she was beautiful, he noted that before, but seeing her like this, the way her eyes looked at him... He had no trouble ending the life of the one police officer in the laboratory, but now, fear actually raked his body. Garfield hated it, but his body trembled as regret clouded his mind over hurting such a... precious soul.

He had to get out of there, quick. Sheathing the staff behind him on his collar, Garfield got away from Starfire, in which he could just make out the last look in her eye before he ran away, back to his father. She was confused, but there was another emotion there that made his heart swell.

Curiosity.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/U: Thanks for reading! Ultimately decided not to add a 5th Titan for the reasons of A. Wasn't sure just who to add between Kid Flash, Jinx and even Titans outside of the show like Blue Beetle and B. I felt more confident writing the four of the Titans rather than trying to add on a 5th.
> 
> Please do leave a review and tell me how you liked the chapter, there was a lot of violence and there will be more to come, but hopefully we can get some romance in there as well as we find out further the connection Garfield feels to Starfire.


	3. Chapter Two: Chang

_" It seems that there is a new supervillain in Jump City, California. Last night at one of Jeffery Hughman's laboratories, someone had infiltrated and stolen classified property from the facility, workers tell JC News. "_

The news anchor's voice just seemed to taunt Robin, his gloved fingers digging into the leather fabric of the couch in the Common Room. The pain of defeat almost never stung this bad before, making his body shake in rage, which only fed into the pain of his wounds over his back scream even more. How could he let himself get fooled like that? How had he never found out about this 'Garfield' before?

_" Lab workers have remained silent on just what has been stolen, but have assured they are working with police in order to try and get it back. But if the reports coming from the Teen Titans are true, that will be no easy task. According to their leader and former apprentice to Gotham's Batman, the thief in question is aligned with perhaps the most mysterious villain in Jump City, Slade. "_

His lucky cape hadn't been able to protect him from the glass shrapnel that pierced his skin and left several cuts over his back, his stomach was aching in pain after a gorilla powered gut punch and he had twisted his knee after being tossed around like a ragdoll straight afterwards. Whoever this 'Garfield' was, he was certainly a cut above the usual criminals Jump City got. Mumbo Jumbo, Doctor Light, Doctor Chang, Control Freak... they were annoying, but never did they cause such injuries to the team like the apprentice did.

_" But it seems that this thief isn't just that. On the scene of the crime, a police officer by the name of Dwayne Colton was found dead, shot to death with his own pistol. Nothing is known for sure on how he had died, but early reports say that he had been in the nearby area when alarms first went off and went to investigate, only to be attacked and murdered by this villain. "_

Raven was the first one to find the body, though it wasn't like she was looking for it. After being kicked up into the second level of the laboratory, she landed just feet away from the cop's corpse. She ended up with a cracked rib, along with others being bruised and a broken nose. Thankfully she heals quick thanks to her powers, but even then, she wasn't going to available for the next day or so. Robin could glance over to the kitchen area and see her with two tissues stuffed into her nose, idly stirring a cup of tea.

_" The Teen Titan's primary mechanic and builder, Cyborg, found signs of the extremely rare disease, Sakutia, in the blood of this villain. He has primarily green skin, hair and eyes, and was seen wearing black and orange. If you see someone fitting this description, it is advised you contact police forces immediately, as the mayor of Jump City has been adamant in declaring that he doesn't want any outbreak of the deadly disease to come over the city. "_

Cyborg was probably the one who was going to miss the most time. His entire circuitry was damaged after their battle, thanks to the electric-induced overload that struck his power grid. He had to carry around a large battery that hooked up to his chest in order to keep his power levels in check and not risk any sort of outage until he could verify that all his functions had returned to normal. Not only that, but his arm had been ripped off of him, which he himself described as something that would take him days to fully repair, in conjunction with his power shortages. And given how his injuries were all purely related to his robotics, Raven couldn't even try to heal him with her powers. In the meantime, Cyborg was sitting at the dining table, the large battery sat next to his bowl of ramen, barely touched as he continued to work on the circuitry in his shoulder.

_" We were able to have an interview with the leader, Robin, about the battle that ensued with this villain. He says that he goes by the name of 'Garfield Logan', though Logan is only his middle name. All Titans were injured in the battle, but are fully capable of stopping any sort of attacks that go in the city like normal. "_

Starfire, being the most durable of the Titans, was the most healthy of the four. Her bruises had all but subsided at this point, and her injuries mostly come with the side effects of the flashbang that went off under her. She couldn't handle bright lights, which is why the lights were dimmed around the Tower, along with the fact that she had to wear earplugs for the time-being to help combat the constant ringing in her eardrums.

Robin was infuriated by her condition, something that he could've easily prevented had he knocked out the apprentice of Slade's, or handcuffed him immediately, instead of trying to interrogate him in a fit of rage after finding out that Slade was back. Not only that, he couldn't protect her when the menace stood over her, staff in hand and ready to finish off the weakened Tamaranean. Just why he didn't was unclear, with Starfire's senses still rattled from the effects of the flashbang, she could only make out the sharp red color of the explosive tip of the shaft pointed right at her face, and then.. it wasn't.

Did Slade want her alive? Then why didn't he capture her? Was it purely for intimidation?

Whatever it was, Robin was working endlessly on tracking down this Garfield, the supposed son of Slade, to try and find a connection between the two in anyway he could in order to try and get the true name of his arch-nemesis. He had found a few leads on signs of Sakutia in Africa, but it was all contained and no one has gotten the fatal disease in half a decade, and that was when the son of two rangers had gotten bit by a Sakuta-infected monkey. He was looking more into that, most recently getting the names of the two parents, Mark and Marie Logan.

* * *

_" The reemergence of Slade in Jump City only means bad things, if anyone has any leads on the villain's whereabouts, along with his supposed apprentice in 'Garfield', both the police force and the Teen Titans urges you to immediately contact them. And now we move on to the story of Dwayne Colton, not only was he a veteran of the Jump City Police Force, but also a loving husband and a caring father... "_

The radio was cut off as the news went to transition into a tribute for the cop who was killed, turned off by Garfield's own father, Slade. The tall, secretive man had forced his son to stay the night elsewhere, somewhere far away from their home in case he was being tracked or got caught up with law enforcements. But after having arrived back in home in the early morning, the changeling couldn't be happier to see his unmasked father with a smirk on his face upon seeing him.

A part of Garfield felt superior to everyone else, knowing what the most elusive villain in Jump City looked like while no one else did. Chiseled face with a few wrinkles, he wore an eye-patch over his right eye, had silver-gray hair that ran down to the middle of his neck, along with spotless sideburns, all going down to a thick enough goatee.

"Good work." Was his simple words when Garfield had returned home, but that was the most praise he had received in over a year, and he was elated to hand over the top-secret staff over to his father who examined it for a brief moments before sheathing it. The apprentice explained everything that happened during his heist, including how he had fought and defeated each of the Titans, but he did hide his plot to kill the Tamaranean, Starfire. A part of him thought of this as weakness, that he should stand up for his own plans and ideas, but it was his first mission and he didn't want to disobey his father, who specified that all Titans remained alive. But another part of him was relieved he had an excuse to not talk about the alien, knowing just why he didn't end up finishing her off...

Of course, Slade wasn't quite satisfied with that, and he went into his office alone to verify Garfield's story, and this made the changeling nervous. He knew that his father was a master of hacking and probably had access to all security cameras in the area of where the fight commenced, and what he'd think when he nearly killed Starfire, something he specifically forbid. So while that happened, he turned on the radio just outside of the assassin's office, listening to the news covering his theft and attack to occupy his mind.

Slade's home was very comfy, auburn-colored wood was laid on the floor, shining enough to practically see your reflection in. Tasteful dark red was painted over the walls, with several paintings of the wealthy assassin, all of which of course of him unmasked. Just outside of the office, there was a small end table with a radio on-top, mostly for decoration but it still could pick up the local radio stations, including the news.

And now Logan looked up at the man that raised him, trying his best to hide his anxiety and meet the man's one-eyed gaze with confidence and intensity. But if a man could read emotions, it was Slade, and he could tell that his father wasn't exactly convinced by his bravado.

"Excellent."

Or maybe he was? Garfield had expected some sort of chewing out, but instead, the assassin looked quite pleased with his son, running a gloved hand through his green, oily hair and petting him, like a dog. An act considered humiliating to most was amazing for the changeling. Physical appreciation was something he NEVER received, usually getting 'Acceptable' or 'Decent', maybe a 'Good' if he was lucky whenever he did something good, but an 'Excellent' and physical gratification? It was something he never actually thought he'd receive!

And while it didn't last long, it was more than Garfield could ask for in terms of a reward. "Now, with the Titans out of commission, or at least weakened for the day, I want you to accompany me somewhere." And it just kept getting better, if he had a tail, it'd be wagging like crazy right now. "A scientist by the name of Professor Chang is willing to negotiate on a lucrative amount of Xenothium. However, he is also known to not exactly hold up on his side of deals, and while I am confident I could take him should he ever do that, You are to come with me just in case."

"Of course!" Garfield almost yelled, letting out a cough afterwards and clearing his voice, not wanting to seem too excited about the mission. He had already been plenty elated when he heard about his lab-robbing, why was this mission so special compared to that? A snort came out of Slade's nostrils, and the apprentice couldn't quite read if it was out of annoyance or amusement before the man spoke once more. "I wasn't asking, Garfield. Now, hand over your utility belt."

A moment of hesitation passed before the teen complied, unbuckling and holding out his belt to his father who took it. "Why?" Garfield made sure to ask AFTER he had handed it over, as to make sure he didn't seem to be defying. "I wish to see what you can do without these tools. Your defeat of the Teen Titans was very impressive and you did good with what you were given, so I want to see what you can do without these tools." The grizzled villain explained thoroughly, walking back into his office to place the belt down on an weapons' chest, and when he came back out, his signature black and bronze mask was held under his arm.

It was true, while he did defeat the Titans, he did have to use most of the weapons in his arsenal, and if he didn't have that smokebomb and flashbang, he probably wouldn't have won that battle, and would've to at least retreated. "Now, let's get going. Chang wants this transaction to be done as soon as possible, so let us not disappoint the Professor."

* * *

Garfield was forced to follow his father from the skies as a crow, watching his white Ferrari 812 drive casually along the road. They were set to meet up only blocks away, which made the changeling confident if Slade was willing to do something like this so close to his personal home. And bring such an expensive vehicle nonetheless. Then again, the assassin wasn't really attached to cars, since he rarely drove when not on a job, and when he was on a job, his clients usually had already paid for his travel and for any vehicle use he may need.

It didn't take long until the expensive Ford pulled up and parked on the curb just outside of the lone warehouse. A second later, the classic Slade opened up and walked out of the car, wearing his signature mask and suit, an odd sight to see in broad daylight, but with no one else around, it wasn't exactly risky. And when the black-covered man opened up the door to the abandoned place of storage, Garfield took that as his queue to follow, dropping down and shifting back into his human form, catching the door just before it closed and following his father inside.

"... Aaah, and this must be Garfield!" An elderly voice greeted the changeling as he walked in, doing so while a man dressed in laboratory whites was speaking. On his face was black, three-eyed goggles, lenses shining with scarlet red. And while his wrinkles told of his age, he was the shortest in the room, with Garfield noting that the man couldn't be taller than 5'6". Standing at his sides were two tall, muscular guards, wearing similarly colored white jumpsuits that were akin to hazard suits. Tinted glass on their helmets covered their faces and the two of them each carried weapons. The one on the right held a long staff, red electricity dancing off the fork-shaped end of it, while the one of the left held a gun similar to that of an assault rifle, but a cool gray coloring and a shining rid tip.

"The Toppler of the Titans, the Hunter of the Heroes, the  _Beast_  of the Brats! Glad to meet you,  _boy_." Professor Chang went on, extending a gloved hand out for a handshake, but he was quickly rebutted by a swift glare from the apprentice's master. "Not a fan of the nicknames, are you Slade? And here I thought 'The Terminator' would welcome such taglines!"

"If I were to have pleasantries, I'd choose to do them with someone much more my sort of caliber." Was Slade's simple answer, not a hint of malice in his tone despite what he just said, that cold, calculating eye staring a hole through the professor. "Oh, you hurt me, Wilson! But if you wish, we will do business without any of the 'pleasantries'." The elder said with a bow, nodding towards his two guards who gripped each side of a large, metal chest and lifted it open.

It was nearly overflowing with crates of red radiating Xenothium, almost hurting Garfield's eyes to look at with how much of it was glowing. Slade's eye and body language didn't change, except for him walking forward and kneeling down to get a closer look of the compound. "A joy to look at, isn't it? My mind wanders endlessly of just what you would use all of this wondrous ore for." Chang said in a dandy manner as the assassin picked up a singular vial of the power source, twisting it around in his two fingers.

Curiosity set in for Garfield and he made two large steps forward, wanting to get a closer look as well and asking his father for permission to do so without words. Slade simply nodded his head, instantly understanding his son's steps and thus the changeling walked over fully, picking up a vial as well and squinting his eyes as he examined it. "Careful now, green one. It is quite the unstable chemical, if just a small bit of it touches your already messed up skin, who knows what would happen.." Chang's voice was starting to annoy the apprentice now, looking upward to give the professor a hard glare after he heard his skin being called 'messed up'.

It wasn't exactly false, but he at least thought there was a level of respect between the two since he defeated the Teen Titans, something that Chang himself hadn't done. If he wanted, he could point out the amount of wrinkles the professor had in his ugly face, or how he had stump legs, or the fact that he had a hunchback, or- "So, do we have a deal, Mr. Slade?" The old man eventually asked of the villain, who glanced up at Chang, his single eye narrowing down in thought before eventually, Slade stood up. "What's your price, Professor?"

Suddenly, a red blast struck Garfield's shoulder, sending him crashing into the nearest wall. But instead of a burning or sharp pain, the only discomfort he felt was a sore back after it landed directly on the wall, and the fact that a sticky substance was seemingly glued to his arm. Taking a look, a large web of scarlet was stuck to his shoulder and the wall behind him, and a couple of hard jerks wasn't enough to free him. And then glancing up, he saw one of Chang's guards with that rifle pointed at him, while the professor watched on with a grin. "The sheriff was very clear on his priorities to take in your pet, Slade."

"How much is he offering?" Slade asked, his one eye showing surprise but not... urgency. He just stood there, arms behind his back as if this was just a normal business transaction. "Oh, nothing concrete yet. The news of Sakutia being in him is driving it up, but the possibilities of keeping him for a good while, maybe have him sent out to do a few jobs to up his price, get them desperate, it's also a tempting decision." The professor responded with a sinister smirk, causing Garfield to furrow his brow. "Father, help me out here!" He growled, kicking and tugging at the red web that ensnared his arm, but to no avail.

But, he didn't. He just stood there. "Tempting, but not smart. The police will forget about him in due time. If you truly want him as your price, then I suggest calling them in now." Slade advised the shorter man, who gave a nod of his head and tapped a few buttons on what looked like a small radio box on his belt. That singular mysterious eye of his father bore into the trapped changeling, as Chang had a sinister smirk on his face, guards by his side. It was... taunting, like he was daring him to do anything about his condition, to try and fight back in his helpless position.

"Or.. perhaps a man of your scientific expertise could find another way to make use of him." Slade continued to talk to the professor, that narrowed eye never leaving his son. "The DNA of the entire animal kingdom is in his blood. Just imagine the possibilities..."

A panicked huff escaped Garfield's mouth as he heard that, his eyes pleading with his father, trying to snap him out of this, to realize that he is far more valuable than some dumb red glowsticks, but nothing. Why? After all those years, he was going to toss him away like this? After saving his life and raising him, he was going to be abandoned? ...No, he wasn't going to allow that! Confusion turned to grief, and that grief turned to anger. He struggled more and more, until eventually realizing that he wasn't going to break through that special glue. Whatever it was, he wasn't going to get it off of him with one arm. But the thin wall however...

Transforming into a gorilla, or at least, as most of one as he could with his left arm completely entrapped and thus remained human. Swinging a huge arm towards the wall behind the goo, his fist was easily able to break through the wooden structure. He then gripped down on the outpointing wood, yanking down hard until eventually, his body landed down onto the asphalt floor of the warehouse. A large chunk of wood was still stuck to his arm thanks to the red goop that was glued to him, but at least he wasn't restricted to the wall now and his eyes was set on Professor Chang.

Slade seemed to have ran away or something, as his only opposition between him and the professor was his two guards. Several shots of red adhesive was fired in his direction, but thankfully for Garfield, the wood stuck to his arm was just large enough to act as a shield to absorb the glue-like substance while he closed the distance. His thunderous stomps didn't slow down as the guard kept firing, and the man in the white radioactive suit seemed to realize that this wasn't going to work out for him, as he tried to turn his back and get some distance between the two again, but the changeling wasn't going to allow that, grabbing him by the arm and tossing him into a nearby crate.

An electric shock ran through Garfield's body, the cold feeling of steel pressing against his side and his vision blacked out for a moment, causing him to kneel over. Turning his gaze to his right, the second bodyguard stood, static staff in hand and looking to shock him again. At the last second, the gorilla ducked down, avoiding the electric stab by mere hairs, and at the same time, shifting back into his human form and kicking out a leg to sweep and trip the guard. The man dropped his staff in the process, the metal pole bouncing and rolling far away from him.

Before the faceless guard could try and make a move, Garfield was atop of him, using the wood stuck to his arm to slam down onto his adversary's protected face, not stopping as the sound of glass breaking and wood splintering indicated the damage that the changeling was dealing, and even the screams of fear from the man didn't stop him. Only when there was silence and his arms were properly covered in blood did he pant and stop, looking down at the gruesome mess he made on the face of the security guard of-

"Stupid boy!" -Professor Chang's, his voice followed by another paralyzing and painful shock running through Logan's body, this time causing the changeling to fully fall over, asphalt digging into his sweat-soaked top and his blurry gaze looking up at the ugly scientist who stood over him with that electric staff. "At least your DNA will be valuable.."

And what happened next, Garfield could barely even see, but the sound... a gunshot echoed in his eardrums, earning a pained grunt and for him to raise a stone-weighted hand to plug one of them. His gaze seemed like he was looking through fogged glass, but he could make out the spurt of scarlet that escaped Chang's cranium, followed by an unpleasant _*thump*_ and the professor falling out of sight.

His ears still ringing, Logan took several seconds, up to a minute before beginning to get back up, his muscles feeling gravitated towards the ground making it a somewhat difficult action, but eventually, as his vision cleared, his eyes fell onto Slade staring at him with that sinister eye, a smoking pistol in his hands. "Not bad, you cannot let your rage get in the way of taking out all opposition however." His silky voice evaluated his son, letting the wounded boy slowly wobble his way over to him.

"Wh... You..." Garfield was at a lost of breath, along with the fact that the situation was just so.. confusing. His father was just about to sell him off, but now... But eventually, his fried brain connected the dots and tears began to well up in his eyes. He... was testing him, to see if he could handle himself. He didn't have any intention to leave him to some crazed professor, he just wanted to see what his son was capable of in person. "I... thought you were going to abandon me..." He half-whined, his face pressing against the metal plating of his father's chestpiece, a soft hand placed on his shoulder.

"You are my son, are you not?" Slade's tone never changed, Garfield's exhausted body and brain unable to contain all the emotion that was running through him, sobs clawing out of his lungs and tears falling from his flustered cheeks onto the black jumpsuit of the assassin's. "I l-love you.." The changeling heaved, and he only received a gentle pat to his upper back in response, but it was still oh so comforting all the same.  _"Let's get out of here now.."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/U: Oh no, no romance this chapter! Just more violence! Don't worry, romance is coming, I just wanted to write a bit on the relationship between Garfield and Slade.
> 
> Please do leave a comment and tell me how you liked it, thanks so much for reading this far in and I hope you come back for more!


	4. Chapter Three: Another Mission

Starfire wasn't about to pretend that she hadn't seen some horrible stuff from her time on Tamaran. The war on her people led to many brutal battles, and she often saw the aftermath of such conflict. Tamaraneans were much more durable than humans and had a much stronger resistant to pain, so when a Tamaranean went down with an injury, you better believe it was something bad.

So while Robin had tried to shelter her from what they were about to witness, the alien thought she could handle it just fine. But... maybe her time on Earth had made her soft. Death in battle was a rarity, most criminals usually being restrained before anything escalated to that level, and her friends hardly ever had serious injuries. So when she laid her protected gaze onto the mauled face of one of the victims' in a far out warehouse, almost unrecognizable from a normal human's face with it so covered in dried blood, a gasp escaped from her mouth and she quickly looked away.

The Teen Titans had received a call about some seemed to be a deal of goods gone wrong, with two dead and one wounded. It was rather confusing as to why they were being notified with this, seeing as how just normal criminals were usually left to the local police force to handle, but then they were told that one of the victims was one of the Titans' long time enemies, Professor Chang. He was supposedly selling a crate-load of Xenothium to an unknown buyer, and, obviously, things didn't go according to his plan and he ended up with a bullet in his head.

Starfire was still suffering side effects from the flashbang that rattled both her sight and her hearing, but she found it to be manageable enough to be outside if she wore some sunglasses, or as she put it, 'Glasses of the Sun'. And the ringing in her ears was still present, so she still had to wear earplugs, but they were small enough so that she could still hear others, but reduced normal talk down to mere whispers, though the sound of cars driving and other loud noises were quite the bother for her. Robin was with her, refusing to show any sort of weakness despite the fact that he was still nursing his twisted knee. He didn't even have to tell her that he was in pain, she had been with him so long, she could read his face and body language almost without fault. He refused to limp, but each time he put weight on his left leg, his upper lip would raise just a tiny bit before falling back into place and his mask would scrunch up a small amount.

Of course, the Boy Wonder insisted that he was fine, but Starfire knew that to not be true and she just wished he didn't feel the need to be so tough and 'macho', as Cyborg once described it, all the time.

Speaking of Vic, he and Raven were both currently back at the Tower, still nursing their injuries, as while Robin had told the news that they were fine and could protect the city if need be, Cyborg still suffered from outages and was currently charging up after he dropped his battery and he almost lost all power. Raven meanwhile was meditating, trying her best to focus all of her energy on healing, and going to a crime scene with two victims wasn't really relaxing.

So it was just her and Robin, who was currently looking down at the body of Professor Chang. He had fallen awkwardly, on his stomach, right leg atop of his left with his arms each pointing outward like a starfish. And, of course, the gaping bullet wound that easily pierced his white helmet. There wasn't any need for them, as it was clear how both of the men died, but the bodies were soon to be hauled off for an autopsy report to see if they could find any evidence without possibly contaminating the corpses.

A heavy sigh escaped the Boy Wonder's mouth, and Starfire levitated over to place a hand on the shoulder of the black-haired leader. With Robin's previous work of being the apprentice of Batman, he had a clear no-kill policy, and death was something he could hardly stomach. As much as he hated the likes of Slade, he never wished death upon him, only that he be stopped and put in jail. And while Professor Chang had previously blindsided Robin and nearly destroyed the city, Starfire could feel that he felt no real hatred for the man.

And neither did she. He was a coward at heart and certainly a villain, but... he wasn't  _awful._  She could certainly come up with villains that she disliked more. "Who would Professor Chang be selling Xenothium to?" Robin said to no one in particular, his brow furrowed and a pair of latex-covered fingers stroked his chin, glancing up at Kori who also entered thought. Professor Chang had made a few enemies in his work besides just the Titans thanks to his devious ways of going about business, but why would Chang set up a meeting with any of those people?

No, it had to be someone Chang was cool with, or at least was on speaking terms with. And that made the list so much longer. Doctor Light, Psimon, Killer Moth, Adonis, The HIVE Five, there were many villains that were at least partial to Professor Chang, enough to set up a meeting at least. But none of them wielded a gun. They all opted for less conventional weapons, and had no problems getting their own power sources, so why would they need to buy such an unstable compound?

"Perhaps the Brother Blood has escaped from jail?" Starfire suggested, but was quickly rebuffed with a firm shake of Robin's head. "No, I checked in with the Steel City police force before grabbing you. No recent escapes, let alone from someone as high level as Blood." He dismissed the notion, a heavy sigh escaping his lips afterwards. "Red X hasn't been seen in a while, and he has..  _had_  beef with the Professor." The Boy Wonder went back to thinking out-loud and Kori continued to float around the warehouse, her eyes narrowing as she tried to see anything that would help, any unmarked evidence, but her sunglasses, while great for protecting her eyes, made it difficult to make out any details.

So, once she was in a relatively dark spot in the warehouse, Starfire shed her sunglasses, blinking at the newfound light and all the new colors that assaulted her sensitive eyes without her mahogany-colored senses, before eventually, her vision was clear enough for her to look around and see if there was anything she could find. Besides the two corpses and the guard who was hauled off to the hospital, there wasn't much to determine just who was in the warehouse at the time. Was it a single person who carried out the double murder, or maybe a gang?

Her eyes trailed until she had to shield her eyes from the glaring sun as a big hole in the wall allowed the light to seep in. Shading her eyes, Kori once again attempted to look at the gap, only to notice something... interesting as she began to look up. It was a glimmer, but it was all the Tamaranean needed as she floated over, using her hand to protect her eyes as the beaming sun stared at her. Any other time and such a bright day would bring joy to her, but right now? It was just an annoyance. She never thought she could hate the sun, and she still didn't, but now she was beginning to understand what it was like for Raven, to have the light burning into your eyes in the mornings after spending all day and night in a dim-light room.

But that was at the back of her mind as Starfire kneeled down beside the hole, her gaze, while dampened, still had a knack for little details that humans had troubles picking up, and what she saw was a few strands of hair. Not just any normal hair... or was it even hair? It was green. The same green that filled her sight just a few nights ago, dressed in black and bronze.  _Garfield._  Her delicate fingers pinched the hairs, lifting them up for closer examination and she silently confirmed it to herself. Small bits of red gloop stuck on the ends of them, and the alien had to tug one of her fingers free after giving it a small touch. The same adhesive that Professor Chang was known for.

Her mind trailed back to Garfield, remembering the haunting sight of the green-skinned criminal standing over her, sweat-soaked and furious with that metallic staff in hand, recently stolen... Her vision was still very blurry from the flashbang, but.. her sight had become clearer faster than she let on...

* * *

_"Robin!" Starfire screeched as a large ball of smoke enveloped the Boy Wonder and 'Garfield', but before she could react, to try and save her friend, a cylinder-shaped bomb had been tossed at her feet and exploded. But instead of shrapnel piercing her, her vision became white, and it seemed the bomb had more 'oomf' than it looked, as her ears were screaming in agony at just how... loud it was. Her hands came up to try and protect her eardrums, to shut off the screeching ringing through her mind, but she couldn't hear or see anything, her eyes shut tight and ears ringing, which left her an easy target..._

_Next thing Star knew, she was driven to the ground, crushing pain slamming down onto her chest, followed by her body crashing into the road, feeling the asphalt crumble and flatten beneath her. Seconds passed afterwards, the screaming pain still a constant in her head, but she could, only faintly, hear the sound of footsteps. **Angry**  footsteps. She had to fight back, to get up and take down this criminal... no matter how much it hurt._

_Her eyes burned as she opened them, a blurred vision of green, black and bronze above her, along with bright red a foot away from the tip of her nose. Slowly, her vision began to clear, and... there he was. Garfield Logan, as he called himself. The supposed son and apprentice of Slade, who had succeeded in not only stealing the top-secret staff of a local laboratory, but having bested the Teen Titans in combat and was about to... drive that explosive staff into the face of hers.._

_She tried to react, but her muscles felt lifeless after the smash down onto the road, and the ringing in her head prevented her from focusing on her emotions to summon her starbolts. She was helpless and fear enveloped her gaze. She couldn't go out like this!_

_But... he didn't finish her off. Starfire watched as Garfield seemed to have an inner struggle with the concept, body shaking and doubt crossing his eyes, that sickening frown on his face that was fuming with rage turned into a silent gasp drenched in despair. His irises widened, as if he was in a trance and just broke out of it, realizing just what he was doing. It.. confused the Tamaranean, to see this once ruthless villain seem so... hesitant. And slowly, he sheathed his weapon, muttering swear words under his breath and seemingly in a rush to get out of there._

_It was... intriguing. Just who was this Garfield? Her eyes followed him as best as they could, but in her weakened state, where her muscles felt almost glued to the street, she could only give a last curious gaze in the direction of the changeling._

* * *

Starfire had thought that maybe he wasn't a killer, that his mission from Slade was to kill her and he refused, but... she later found out about the police officer who he had killed just minutes before the Teen Titans showed up. And that was something that was going to haunt the Tamaranean for the rest of her days. She and the rest of the Titans hadn't thought anyone was in danger, it was a laboratory closed at night far away from most common nightspots. If she had known that the police officer was just a block away, oh how she would've rushed her way there. Instead, they wasted precious minutes back at the Tower for Cyborg to start up the T-Car, of course bragging about it to Robin as he got in, even showing off his new upgrades which made her giggle.

Everyone felt guilty for the death, especially Cyborg, who took his frustration out on the very T-Car that he had previously bragged about, uninstalling and destroying the very upgrades that he had shown off to the others.

Starfire's heart squeezed at the memory of a sobbing Victor practically tearing apart his 'Baby', as he described it, hating both himself and it for costing the life of a brave and respected officer of the force. But... another part of her heart felt tight as she thought of the murder itself. Garfield  _was_  a killer. And that made her... sad. Murder isn't really common in Jump City, so each time the Titans had gotten involved with one, it was particularly hard on Starfire. But this one hurt even more. Why? Was it because she felt that Garfield was better than that? Was it because of the officer's status? Emotions were something she always had trouble with. Well,  _HER_  emotions.

Kori could read the emotions of others pretty well, like how she picked up on Robin's affection for her rather quickly. How Raven was always jealous of the three when they laughed and told jokes while she sat away from the others. How Cyborg felt grief when a mechanical part of him malfunctioned and didn't work properly, like the time his right hand couldn't grip down for a week. He tried to hide it with jokes, but she could see just how sad he was whenever he would drop something because of his malfunctioning hand, just wishing things were simpler for him.

Oh how she wished to be able to read herself as well as others, so that she could tell just what was going on in her heart and mind about this Garfield.

"What's that, Star?" Robin's voice interrupted her thoughts, who seemed to ignore her lack of sunglasses in favor of his interest towards what she held in her hand. And seemingly without noticing, Starfire had gripped down onto the green hairs while in thought. "Robin... I think that Garfield may have something to do with this." She responded, opening her palm and holding up the hairs up to the Boy Wonder, who took and held them with his thumb and index finger, mask narrowing and a small grimace crossing his face.

But before he could comment, the orbs on Starfire's gauntlets began to glow red, as well as the center of Robin's belt.  _Trouble._  The alien thought somberly as this made the third day in a row someone was causing trouble, and it didn't take the world's smartest detective to figure just who was causing the ruckus. "Star, you should get back-" "No." Kori cut off any attempt of the Boy Wonder's to shield her from danger, hiding her sad look in place of a determined one and it seemed that the leader got the message, giving his leg a quick shake before running over to his R-Cycle, throwing on his helmet and zooming off towards their destination, the Tamaranean flying right beside him after putting back on her sunglasses. If she was going to get answers for her feelings, then hiding from the cause of them wasn't going to do anything. This Garfield guy, whoever he is and whatever his motivations are... she needed to find them out.

* * *

Garfield was exhausted, both physically and mentally. Just a day after the Xenothium deal gone  _right_ , with the death of the wicked Professor being all apart of his father's plan, along with securing a great amount of Xenothium. More than enough to power the entire city, not even the changeling knew just what his mentor was going to do with all of it, but he did have a clear idea in mind. First the staff, then the Xenothium, and now he was going into another laboratory, seeking out a special chemical that he's been told to enhance the physical traits of humans.

A bit like 'VENOM' that Bane used to power up his already superhuman body, it seemed that Hughman's scientists were trying to replicate the addictive drug, keyword being 'trying'. It was still very addictive, but their goal was to eliminate that, and to make it sustainable to strengthen the human body, increasing muscle mass and blood flow, as well as increasing brain activity and enhancing the seven senses.

Basically, it was suppose to be a 'miracle' drug. And Slade didn't want to wait until it was released to the public. As well, early versions of these sort of drugs tend to be far more... unpredictable and much more like its 'Venom' counterpart rather than a life-extender and body regenerator it was hyped up to be. And unlike Venom, this one was being guarded by weak scientists rather than a monstrous, smooth-talking Brit with the strength to break backs like no one else.

He was dressed in his standard black and bronze jumpsuit, armored gauntlets and boots still in tow, but again, without his utility belt. Or at least, without the  _utility_  in his utility belt, given how all of his tools and weapons were missing and only the belt remained The Titans were weakened, so Slade decided to test him once more. No tools and no weapons, just his powers, his body and his mind. And while Garfield knew his physical traits and mind were much better than the average human's, he felt... weak. While he did have enhanced healing, the skin on his arm still hadn't grown back from when he had to tear off the red glue that stuck to him, and holy hell did it sting.

.The pain of actually ripping the adhesive from his arm was painful enough, having lost lot of blood in the process and even exposing the flesh beneath his mutated skin, but it just didn't go away. It burned so bad, the constant feeling of his unprotected flesh rubbing against his bandages was like torture. Not to mention he felt mentally drained, having to kill two people in two days, as well as having to deal with his emotions being toyed with by his father, his newfound feelings for Starfire, be them real or not.. it was tough. But this was what he wanted. To be his father's apprentice. To do whatever he said and grow into a mirror image of the man who saved his life. And this was by far better than living in a eight foot wide room, tied to a pole like a dog.

Eyeing up the door to the laboratory, he took a deep breath, cracked his neck and thrust his boot forward to snap the door off of its hinges. "Everyone down!"

A room filled with average humans dressed in white coats and pants froze at the command, some not even bothering to look up to see who was giving the demand before crouching down underneath her desks. And it seemed that others got the message once they got a look at the mutated man stepping through their facility, ducking down to avoid the wrath of the stranger.

Garfield let out a snarl as the room began to glow red, a loud blaring alarm doing little more than piss off the changeling, his sensitive eardrums in pain over the obnoxious sound. Of course, he knew that would happen, but that didn't mean it still wasn't highly annoying to deal with. Trudging forward, he knew that the test samples of the green chemical would be in the higher levels, and with the outer-design of the laboratory being near identical to the past facility, it shouldn't be difficult to navigate.

Things were going relatively smooth, with him reaching the staircase leading up to the second floor, that was, until he ran into some pale-skinned blonde girl who seemed to be frozen in place once her brown eyes got sight of him. What she was doing, he didn't know, since she was looking like she was coming DOWN the stairs, even with the blaring alarm and flashing lights. Was she trying to stop him? She certainly didn't look like she could handle a kitten, let alone a strong muscled guy who could just so happen to turn into a kitten if he wanted to.

"Move." Was his simple demand, upper lip curling up into a snarl, revealing one of his sharp fangs to the girl. Whoever she was, she didn't seem important, looking very generic for the humans that Garfield had seen in his time on his work. Bright white coat covering most of her frame, her features were bland and her eyes... were boring. Certainly didn't invoke any emotion in the changeling staring into them, besides annoyance. Though he supposed that her competition wasn't exactly fair in regards to the women that he found attractive. "Pl..Please don't touch me.." Even her voice was unremarkable as she pleaded with the green-skinned man. "You... don't want what's up there, it's really... really unstable. It's not even worth anything!"

Sighing, Garfield stepped up the next few steps until the blonde was only a step up from him. "I said to move, lady." He firmly told her, brows furrowing in frustration. While he had no issue harming people, Slade had told him to try and not create any more victims after killing two people in two days, a third would only bring him more attention and his father preferred to keep things... relatively subtle. Grand theft brought less attention than murder, and while the thin woman would be easy to kill, that wasn't his mission. She wasn't a threat by any stretch, and thus when she silently pleaded with him with her almost yawn-inducing gaze, he grabbed her by the collar of her coat and lifted her up the rest of the stairs, before tossing her to the side of the white floor, letting her scramble and crawl away.

Several white-coats were in the room, playing around with tools that Garfield didn't bother to try and understand, only knowing he needed a few vials to complete his mission. One by one, the scientists turned in the direction of the green invader, most of them getting out of the way of the changeling. News spread quick of a shapeshifting villain who wasn't afraid to kill people and had a deadly disease inside of him, and thus most didn't want to bother with trying to fend off the health threat. But there were a few who looked to stop him, the burliest of the bunch who looked to protect their research.

Courage was admirable, but stupidity was repulsive, and the handful were much more the latter. Since Garfield had little trouble safely knocking out the adversaries, or at least making them rethink facing down a superpowered villain, he went right to a table that so happened to have half a dozen vials filled with the lime-green liquid. Slade said that while VENOM required a straight shot into the bloodstream to have its effects, this drug just needed to get into contact with the skin before it soaked into the muscles and blood cells beneath. Thus, the vials were tightly contained, no cork to close them, instead hard, clear metal with a tight switch that required the mightiest of thumbs to push upward to open. Tucking them into the designated containers on his belt, strapped down tight, he was a bit surprised to just be able to walk back out of the place, the ringing of the alarm the only annoyance he encountered exiting the building.

Of course, he was being just a bit too optimistic when he thought he could get out of sight before the Titans showed up, only this time, only half of them were there for him. A blazing red and black motorcycle was parked a few yards away, and an all too familiar Boy Wonder stood on the road, waiting for him. And above him... god he wasn't ready to look at the Tamaranean again. Was he a coward for doing all he could to avoid Starfire's gaze and instead focus entirely on Robin? Perhaps, but he was willing to be a coward if it meant appeasing Slade, and getting captured because he was too busy having a staring contest with the pretty alien didn't seem like the most optimal way into his father's heart.

He wasn't exactly surprised that the Teen Titans weren't fully together, he gave Cyborg a good frying and that Raven chick a few broken bones to remember him by, and even then, it seemed that the two in front of him weren't at 100%. Robin had a bit of a limp and Starfire was wearing sunglasses, and unless that was a fashion choice he hadn't been clued in on, it seemed the flashbang still gave her some troubles. Then again, he wasn't exactly fully healthy either, what with his wounded arm and fatigued brain.

"Garfield, I'm only going to warn you once. Stand down!" Robin spoke first, pointing a green latex finger at the changeling, who simply growled in response. Expecting some sort of add-on from his companion, he took a mental note of Starfire's silence, because he wasn't about to look up at her face to see just what her facial expression was. And instead of answering, Garfield knew he had to strike early and strike quick, so.. he did. One step forward and he transformed into a tiger, leaping at the Boy Wonder who was ready for the assault, ducking underneath the claws of the big cat.

"Star, check in with the workers and see if they need medical attention!" The Titan ordered his flying friend, who nodded her head and zoomed into the laboratory. Robin then turned in the direction of Garfield, who had shifted back into his human form, shaking his head. Exhaustion had always made his transformations more difficult, but now, in the heat of battle, it was more evident than ever. The simple shift into the tiger took a lot of energy out of him, and he wasn't sure how many more he could do to keep up with the leader. "I didn't kill anyone, just roughed a few up a bit." Logan huffed, getting into battle stance. He had hand-to-hand skills, might as well use them to converse energy.

"Well when dealing with a murderer of three, forgive me if I don't exactly trust you." Dick responded, matching the fighting stance of his green adversary, before eventually, things came to blows. Robin was the first to strike, a chop aimed at the nose of the changeling who blocked it rather easily with a forearm. However the Boy Wonder was quick, both on his feet and in his mind, and before Garfield knew it, a metal boot caught him in the gut, causing a heave and a momentary step-back. And it seemed that he wasn't getting any time to breath, as this time a metal boot was flying towards his chest.

This time, Logan had to duck out of the way of the foot aimed at his ribs, letting the walking traffic light land behind him after the whiff before pouncing onto his back, arms hooking around his head. A grunt escaped Robin's mouth as Garfield wrapped a bicep around his throat and claws replaced his fingernails to scratch at the face of the Boy Wonder. However, before the changeling could make a taunting comment about the situation, blunt pain ran through his forehead that forced him to let go and back off, reaching a hand up to feel at his face, only to see his own blood leaking down his nose. And in front of him was his adversary, holding his signature bo staff while he checked his own face for wounds.

"If you want to play dirty, then let's play!" Robin said in a grizzled tone once drawing his glove away to expose scarlet dribbling from scratches on his cheek. A scowl crossed his mouth and his face wrinkled in determination, and his hand suddenly drew his grapple gun, aimed at the hip of Garfield and fired. The changeling twisted his waist to the side, letting the hook fly past him and returning his gaze to the Boy Wonder, who had a cocky smirk to his face. Awaiting a next projectile or a charge forward, what he wasn't expecting was the raven-haired leader to suddenly blaze forward, drawn in by his grapple.

Logan let out a gasp of shock and pain as he once again felt the cold metal slam into him, unable to react in time as the blunt aching extended over to his gut. His body was propelled back by sudden momentum, until eventually he felt an explosion of sleek white wall behind him and the two crashed through into the inners of another lab, though it did seem to be closed.

Unsure of just what happened, Garfield coughed and held a hand over his screaming stomach, hoping to ease some of the pain as his vision returned to him, only to see the yellow, red and black grapple hook attached to a colorless chunk of the wall they just crashed through. He had used his grapple to propel him forward and catch the changeling by surprise.  _Clever._  He begrudgingly and silently complimented his opponent, only to feel a boot press against his chest and his green gaze looked up to meet the domino-masked Titan that had taken him down. " _Last warning._  Surrender now or I'll drag your body over to the station."

Every part of Garfield hurt, his muscles felt weak and he thought that perhaps he could escape once surrendering, but he knew his father would be greatly disappointed if his son even entertained the thought of giving up. At the very least, he should escape, wait until his wounds were healed and he could properly beat up the Boy Wonder who aggravated him so, but... there was nothing more that the changeling wanted than to pound the boy who had captured his father's attention, to make him pay for taking up much of Slade's thoughts and plans, who was under the wing of the assassin before HIM.

So despite how much his body hated it and screamed against it, Logan transformed.

An anaconda to be specific, wrapping his thick body around the foot and ankle of Robin, who grunted as his muscles and bones were squeezed down upon. Garfield hid his face from the jabbing bo staff that attempted to blind him, only connecting with the durable flesh of the reptile, trying his best to snap every bone in the bird-boy's leg and cripple him, and the continued attempts to pull him off were in vain. The changeling saw his opponent's other leg wobble, threatening to give out on him, and itching to see that happen, his extended jaws chomping down onto his thigh.

And just as victory seemed to be in his grasp and he felt a bone snap beneath his coil, Garfield felt a stabbing pain in his side that forced him to open his mouth and let out a hiss of agony, looking over to see one of Robin's signature birdarangs stuck in his snakeskin, blood oozing out of the wound. And the pain forced him to return back to his human form, crawling away from the leg of the Boy Wonder and reaching for the weapon that was stabbed into his side. It was lodged in deep, and each pull only let more scarlet red gush out of the wound, but the apprentice bit his tongue and ripped, letting out a shriek in agony and clutching at the large gaping hole in his stomach now.

Glancing over at Robin, his vision was blurred but he could still make out the eyesore of his red, green and yellow outfit laid on the ground, gloves clutching at his ankle and forehead pressing against the white tile of the lab. A growl escaped Garfield's mouth, and as much as he did want to obey his father's orders of no deaths, the rage of being stabbed by Robin... that each time he saw him, he saw someone his father chose before him, to leave him rotting in his cellar... perhaps the son that Slade wanted over him...

Gripping down tight on the Bird-a-rang, he flung it as hard as he possibly could right towards the head of the dazed Boy Wonder, hoping to see the image of his own weapon lodged into his brain, his body limp and gray, presented to his father to show him that  **HE**  was the superior apprentice, that all of his attention should've been directed at  **HIM.** But a bright, green flash interrupted the projectile, causing it to break into several pieces and bounce a safe distance away from Robin.

 _No.._  Garfield thought somberly as his chance to kill the source of his jealousy shattered, and only fitting it was by the one Titan that mystified him. "Robin!" Her voice echoed in his ears, he didn't need to see her, he didn't  _WANT_  to see her. And he certainly wasn't ready to fight her. He was aching everywhere, his previous transformations had exhausted him, not to mention the last time he looked into her eyes, he felt emotions that he hadn't felt in years. That he felt ever even. Thankfully, it seemed that her relationship with Robin won out over her sense of justice, as he could hear her asking of his condition.

Clutching his wound, he chose this moment to try his escape, panting as he practically crawled through the hole his body crashed into. But he was struggling, his arm started to bleed again, and he was losing blood quicker than he could run. And to just add onto his misery, the last thing he heard Robin say was "Go after him!". All he could hope to do was hide out and hope that he could regain his energy before they found him, unlikely as it may be.

So, he cut into an alley, unable to hold his breath to fight off the stench of the junk that rotted there. It seemed that despite the ever clean interior of the labs, it was because they dumped all their trash into the dumpsters and stuffed them into the alleys. Soon, Garfield finally collapsed behind one of the dumpsters, trying to fight off his vision blurring, to hold in as much blood as possible, but his clothes were torn and his hands could only cover so much.

"Garfield..?"

That soft voice.. she was there. His glassy eyes glanced upward, but his vision was giving way, black creeping in on the corner of his eyes and everything was a fog. But he could still see her. That bright autumn hair, shining orange skin, purple attire, and of course... those twinkling eyes. The closer she got, the darker his sight went, and just before a hovering hand could touch him, his body gave out and darkness enveloped him, leaving him with a mixture of relief and disappointment that confused him, just like her. _Just like Starfire._


	5. Chapter Four: Interrogation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Huge shoutouts to EmeraldAlyssums on Deviantart for this commission of a scene of this fanfic! Go check them out!  
> https://www.deviantart.com/emeraldalyssums/art/Sparing-a-Precious-Soul-805269186

Cyborg was in a good mood, whistling up a fancy tune while he carried his glowing blue and silver battery over his shoulder like an 80s high-schooler did with a boom-box, a nice bounce in his step as he went into the common room. While he had recently had to power-down and recharge after he dropped his precious metal power source, things weren't as dangerous as that seemed, and after an hour of rebooting, his power levels were returning to normal. And he estimated that he wouldn't need to carry around the recharger for any longer than a day now, which was a blessing.

While he had come to terms with his robotics a while ago, it was still tough, made even tougher by the fact that he had to heft around a goddamn battery just so he could be conscious. Malfunctions were annoying, but they never really restricted him like carrying a 30lb power source in his arm that had to stay attached to his chest. Not to mention the fact that he only had one arm to carry it around with, given how he had only just now developed an exoskeleton for his destroyed limb during that encounter with Garfield.

Speaking of whom, Victor had taken a bit of time researching the deadly disease that he detected on the villain, and so far, things were frustratingly, but understandingly slim on the Internet, and there were no medical records in the U.S. of 'Sakutia'. So he was simply going off of flimsy reports that he found via Google Search, and the only somewhat credible source he found was about the disappearance of two rangers that went by the names of Mark and Marie Logan. They had a son that had contracted the deadly disease, but.. that was all there was. A singular news article in a foreign language that described the boy with the disease. Nothing about him surviving or dying, nothing about how he got it, just "Son of rangers contracted Sakutia".

Raven herself was recovering nicely, her natural powers made her heal much faster than a normal human, and thus her nose was practically as good as new, while her ribs didn't do much more than ache than she put weight on them. She'd be good to go by tomorrow, and really the only reason she didn't go up with Robin and Starfire to check out the crime-scene of Professor Chang's murder was that she wanted to make sure she was at 100% in case of an emergency.

And it seemed that it was a good decision, as Cyborg's robotic eye and Raven's orbs on her gloves and belt went off not long after their leader and their leader's crush left. Victor figured he'd check just what the danger was, and a grim look crossed his face when he saw the location of the crime, a laboratory in the same block of the lab that Garfield robbed and... murdered a police officer.

He still felt terrible about it, reaching out to the family of the cop's and offering his deepest condolences and apologizes to them for not being able to save the husband and father. They were very forgiving and insisted it wasn't his fault, but the pain in their eyes, the distant cries of their daughter stuffed away in her bedroom... No one said that superhero life was easy, that you weren't going to be able to save everyone, and that there would be casualties, but...

"Cyborg, Raven! I require medical assistance!" The blaring voice of the resident alien broke up his thoughts, and he looked over towards the center entrance to the main-ops, his human eye widening at the sight. Starfire was levitating, her sunglasses and earplugs missing, but it seemed that she cared more for the bodies she was carrying over her shoulders. Not body, but bodies. Raven shot up from the couch she was sat at, zooming over to grab one of the bodies, their own leader's in Robin. His ankle was twisted at an odd angle, blood ran down his thigh and there were scratch marks on his face.

But there was another body, and Cyborg could barely believe it. Garfield Logan was over her right shoulder, and he wasn't in good shape. Both his arm and his side was pouring with scarlet red, and while Robin was stirring in Raven's hold and his domino mask was scrunched up in pain, the apprentice was completely limp, and the only sign that he was alive was the occasional heave in his stomach. But Victor was hesitant, why would he want to help a murderer? As much as he DID blame himself for the cop's unfortunate demise, the changeling was the one who pulled the trigger.

"Star, what about you, are you-" "I am fine! But Garfield is losing lots of blood very quickly and needs your help!" Starfire was many things. Assertive was certainly one of them, and Cyborg reluctantly nodded his head, following the Tamaranean as they headed to the medical bay, letting out a grunt as he thought of the implications of this. He was really going to nurse a villain, and a murderer at that, back to health. Curse Kori's heart.

"And Cyborg.. you mentioned that this Garfield has 'Sakutia', correct?" Her bright voice asked, and after the half-robot nodded, she had another question. "And this 'Sakutia' disease is spread through biting, yes?" And while a part of Cyborg wanted to break down fully the ways of contacting Sakutia, that it could be from biting to blood transfer to sometimes even being spat on, he just nodded his head once more to make things simple for his friend, who sometimes had trouble taking in Earthen things. Not to say that she was dumb, of course! But... he imagined it to be extremely difficult to have perfect knowledge of both Tamaran's AND Earth's cultures, traditions, languages, sayings, activities, etc. The fact that she knew so much already and picked up onto more each and every day was a sign of her great intelligence.

"Oh no... Garfield bit Robin in the leg during their fight, I wasn't-" Victor didn't wait for her to finish her statement, be it her blaming herself or voicing her condolences for Robin's safety, he wasn't about to jog while his leader had potentially contradicted one of the deadliest diseases in the world. He ran as fast as his battery could pump power into him, catching up to Raven in the process and snatching the squirming body of Robin in the process from her arms, ignoring her exasperated protest as he got the Boy Wonder to the med-bay as fast as possible.

Robin better be okay, for Garfield's sake..

* * *

Excruciating pain welcomed Garfield as his eyes shot open, reaching up to cup his head, only to meet cold metal resistance. Trying to raise his other hand, he only met the same result, which led to him glancing downward. The room he was in was rather dark, so his tired gaze could barely make out what sort of position he was in. He was laid down, neck and head propped up by a few pillows, while his wrists were strapped down onto two armrests by what seemed to be steel restraints. An idle beeping sound brought him to look at a white machine taped to his right index finger, running all the way to a heart monitor.

Wherever he was, it seemed to be some sort of medical-bay. Like a hospital. But what hospital would accept a green-skinned, murdering, diseased villain?

His wounds on his arm and his side were taped up, and while he remembered feeling far worse, his muscles were still somewhat sluggish and pain still raked at his torso.  _Getting stabbed will do that._  "Hey!" Garfield called out, struggling a bit more against his metal straps, attempting to kick his legs up only to meet the same resistance as he did with his hands. The situation almost reminded him of a comment Professor Chang said, about strapping him down and experimenting on him. Of course, he was credited for the death of the Professor, even though it was his father who ended the elder's life. How he would've liked to be the one to be the one who put down the doctor.

Some worry crept on him as the thought crossed his mind, and the changeling once again called out, exerting as much force in his attempts to escape as he could, but it was all met with the same result of him being stuck in the hospital bed. Any transformation attempts were met with a simple prickle running through his spine and.. nothing. Wherever he was and whatever it is that his adversaries did to him, it left him without the ability to shift into any sort of animal forms, restraints or not.

Garfield's third attempt to call out was interrupted by a loud sliding sound, and glancing upward, even the darkest of rooms couldn't hide those shining emeralds for eyes that stared at him so curiously. And.. worriedly? He had a faint memory of her standing over him before he went out, but he couldn't make out her emotions there. Here? It was crystal clear that she looked at him with many emotions that led to him being even more confused than her.

"You are awake, are you alright?" Her soft voice questioned him, a finger sliding up to a switch right next to the door and a few ceiling lights turned on afterwards, annoying Garfield's dark-adjusted eyes for a few seconds before he was able to fully look at Starfire again. "Uh.. where am I?" The changeling answered her question with a question of his own, the layout of a medical room much clearer with the lights on, white tile and white-painted walls an eye-sore, along with a few other hospital beds and desks with many equipment on them.

"You are at Titans Tower. You were in very poor condition when I caught up to you after your fight." She began to explain, slowly floating over bedside to Garfield's bed, causing him to quickly gulp as those twinkling green eyes got ever so closer to him, peering at him and only him with such curiosity. And when he did gulp, he noticed how the saliva traveled much easier and quicker down his throat, but that wasn't much of a concern for him at the moment. "I.. would have felt very guilty leaving you there. You were bleeding heavily and you were unconscious before I could even think about assisting you."

 _So I HAVE been captured. Great._  He growled in his head, only imagining how disappointed his father was going to be in him. "Speaking of which." An orange hand then reached out to his gut, causing him to flinch and suck in his stomach, trying to avoid her touch as much as he could. "Please don't worry, I am not going to hurt you. I merely wish to check on your wounds." Her voice was... actually very comforting, and a quick look upward into her eyes told him that she was telling the truth. Something so sincere and sweet like the shine in her orbs told him that she meant him no harm, and he slowly allowed exhaled.

Garfield's top, which had been cut up a bit, didn't require much tugging in order to expose his stomach, his toned abs covered up by several colorless bandages that wrapped all the way around his torso. Two long fingers pressed against his side, causing a small hiss to escape his clenched teeth, the pain aching as she poked at where he had been stabbed. "Ah, sorry. Is the pain.. um, sharp? Or blunt?" Starfire asked, once again pressing her fingers at the same spot, this time much gentler. Once again, the pain shot through his stomach, this time Garfield taking note of the pain being much more of an ache than a stabbing pain.

"Blunt? You mean.. dull?" The changeling questioned, letting out a small sigh as the fingers retreated back. "Yes, that is the word! I presume that is how the pain is like then?" She perked up, and while she was correct in her assumption, he was... confused. Why did she even care? She was nice, sure, but it was the dead of night, judging by his outlook of a nearby window. He did recall Slade pointing out her kindness could be exploited, and while it was odd.. he might as well try and use it to his advantage.

"Can I go now?" Garfield asked, putting on his best sad frown and even if it didn't work, it gave him an excuse to stare into her eyes, something he was avoiding for so long. But it seemed that while she was kind, she wasn't dumb, as she just shook her head without giving his eyes a single glance. "Unfortunately not. As much as I dislike the word, you are our prisoner." She solemnly stated, earning a grunt of disappointment from the changeling's throat.

"You have done... very bad things, Garfield. You should consider yourself lucky we are providing you shelter and medicine after all you've done." Starfire continued, floating over to a nearby table with a stack of papers on a clipboard, along with a pen placed down next to it. "Do you think your actions are justified? Using your extraordinary powers to steal, harm, even... kill?" Her words were firm and forward, though her tone hardly wavered as she picked up the pen, casually tested it for ink before beginning to scribble words down onto a paper.

Narrowing his eyes, Garfield felt.. attacked. He didn't take offense to the words she threw, in part of that having to do with her soft voice still possessing that caring nature that he had been able to recognize in the short periods of time when he heard her speak. But, it still felt like a bullet fired from a gun, only to intercepted by a bulletproof vest. She WAS attempting to guilt him, but he wasn't about to let that work, even if he was wondering about her other motives. "Why do you care?" Logan said in a monotone voice, careful to try and not let his curiosity be apparent.

The Tamaranean opened her mouth, seemingly to answer him, but nothing came out and soon she closed it after only uttering a sigh. "Get some sleep, Garfield. Robin and the others wish to speak to you in the morning, and it would be best if you were well rested for that." Her voice lost emotion as she gave him the small breakdown, not giving the changeling the chance to question what she had just told him before the lights were shut off and her tall frame disappeared behind a door.

 _Weirdo._  He quietly huffed, figuring he might as well get some rest before he was interrogated by the Boy Wonder and the hospital bed was fairly comfortable. Still, his mind was racing with what had just transpired, with her checking on him carefully and showing interest into his motives. Those twinkling eyes never lost their shine, her voice only wavering at the end of their conversation.

God, what was wrong with him?

* * *

His slumber didn't last long however, with the feeling of metal pressing against his forehead causing him to shoot his eyes open, only to see the half-man known as Cyborg playfully poking his face. "Wake up, sleepyhead." He teased, giving the changeling's nose a 'boop' before walking away, just in time for his metallic finger to avoid an angry bite. "Let... me out!" Garfield growled, struggling against his restraints, using all the strength he could muster, but alas, it was no use.

"You're not going to break those, you know?" A calm, yet vindicating voice was the next to irritate the changeling, and Gar turned his head to look at the owner of that voice, recognizing it to belonging to the goth heroine of the team, Raven. "Those restraints are tight enough to trap Cyborg over there, and I sincerely doubt you are as strong as him. So save your energy." Her voice held quite obvious disdain for him, and it wasn't hard to tell why once his green eyes captured the bruise that was on the bridge of her nose.

A smirk crossed his face upon noticing it, knowing that it was from him, from when he wasn't restrained and she couldn't just taunt him like a coward. And it seemed she noticed his facial expression, to which he caught her frown only grow wider and her eyes darted away from him. Subtle black energy radiated from her fingers for a few brief moments before fading, and Garfield remembered that anger was considered both a strength and a weakness of hers. Get her angry enough, and she loses all restraint in her power and becomes a monster of rage. Good for strategy, but if that strategy failed, then she wouldn't hesitate to kill you.

He wasn't exactly in a position to abuse that, and he knew that he'd only get more frustrated trying to fire her up, since he was the one in restraints. So, the changeling just turned his attention back to the metal holding him in place, trying once more to break out of them.

"Really, not even a 'thank you.'? And here I thought we were doing you a huge favor here." Cyborg soon spoke, his mostly robotic face turning back to look at him, a slight chuckle escaping from his mouth when he noticed the resistance to his restraints. "First, we heal up your wounds, since while you do have enhanced healing thanks to your messed up DNA, you still wouldn't have lasted too long out there without medical attention due to all the bleeding you were doing. And really, I was fairly hesitant in closing up those wounds since well, I thought you got your dirty Sakutia disease in Robin from when you were fighting him."

Garfield raised a brow, not really wanting to listen to all to this speech, but the part about him dying did unfortunately catch his attention. As well as him potentially infecting Robin, which did make the corner of his lips raise a bit. "Oh, don't get your hopes up, green bean. Turns you can't actually spread Sakutia." Victor was quick to point out, which halted the apprentice's slow smile and brought it back down to a pout. "Yeah, that was a hassle though, cleaning up the injuries you put on my boy. But still, stitched up your stab wound, injected you with some fresh new blood and gave you oxygen. And even after doing all of that, we let you stay here instead of sending you off to prison. Bet that would've been a rude awakening for you."

"Are you trying to guilt me or something, you trash can? Your alien chick already tried that." The changeling growled, getting quite a bit annoyed of hearing a list of the things the Titans did for him, as if he personally asked for all of that. If he could've ran away from Starfire and not pass out, he would've. "Trash can, huh? Your words are like a knife to my heart, you know?" Cyborg chuckled, to which Garfield huffed: "If you even have a heart."

"Oh yeah, it's still in there. Got about 20 layers of machinery covering it, but it's there. But back to what I was saying..." But before the half robot could continue his ear-racking speech, the swishing sound of the med-bay door opening up interrupted him and a shudder went through Logan's body. Robin stared daggers at him, and with good reason, his leg wrapped up in bandages and he had a crutch pressed up against his armpit that he used to help him walk, and Starfire followed him through the door, meeting his gaze for a few brief moments before glancing away.

"Alright, let's skip to the chase, Garfield." The Boy Wonder said with a grunt, his green gloved hands pressing against the rail at the end of the bed, his domino mask bared right at him and a slight snarl on his face. "There's enough on you to put you away for life and more, and as much as you do deserve it, you and I both know that this... isn't entirely your fault." His grim voice practically growled at him, his head turning briefly over towards Cyborg and nodding, inviting him to speak.

"He's right. We know about your past, Garfield. Or at least, enough to know that this isn't what you were meant to be." The half robot then continued where his leader left off, opening up a small hatch on his arm, metallic fingers typing rapidly at the futuristic keyboard. Garfield pouted, his brows furrowing. What could they possibly know? His past..? It did take him a bit to catch on, and once he did, his eyes widened just a bit, not wanting to show much emotion to them, but his surprise was hard to contain.

"The reason you can't spread your Sakutia like animals infected with it is because you were given something that altered your DNA and made the disease apart of it. I can test your blood and detect you have Sakutia, but you can't actually spread it through typical means." Cyborg told him, bringing up a biological map of his body and blood from the computer in his metallic forearm, pointing out his blood cells flowing through his veins, each of them containing a small bit of the deadly disease.

Gar could only growl in response, not meeting Cyborg's face as he told him. However, a new face joined him next to his bed in the demon, Raven, her expression calmed, as well as her voice as she spoke. "Of course, this progression wasn't natural. You would've needed medical attention almost instantly after getting infected, and while Slade's smart, Sakutia is almost a complete unknown disease in western civilization."

"Don't talk like you know him, witch." Logan grunted, banging his wrists on his restraints, knowing where this was going and not wanting to hear it. "We don't need to know him, Garfield. Because we DO know who saved your life. Your  **real** parents." Robin cut in, his hands gripping the bar of the hospital bed tight. "Mark and Marie Logan. Your father was a genius, he managed to save your life with a chemical that merged the Sakuta with your DNA, and even gave you your powers as a side effect."

"Shut up.." Garfield growled, the lower half of the bed rattling thanks to his attempted kicking, but alas, all it did was provide a minor annoyance. "You don't.. fucking know me." Memories of his past life were hitting him, being bit by that damn monkey, traveling from continent to continent, all to that forsaken boat trip. Oh, how he wanted to tear that blasted Boy Wonder to pieces for doing this to him. Tying him up like a damn dog, trying to act superior by talking about his life...

"We know enough to know you did not have a very good upbringing, at least, from when your K'Norfkas had passed and beyond." Starfire interjected, hovering over to the side of his bed, looking down at him with those wide eyes, sparkling with sympathy for him. Sympathy that he  **didn't**  ask for! He knew enough about their pasts too, and yet they didn't hear him serenade them about it! So what if his parents were dead? That didn't matter now, he was living the life he was given and he didn't need others to talk to him about it.

A sigh escaped Robin's mouth before he spoke once more, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Whatever happened, be it you went to him or Slade found you... you don't owe him a damn thing, Garfield. He's a monster, and he's trying to make you the same as him." The Boy Wonder paused, glancing off to his right for a few brief moments. "Or, more likely, he's using you because of your powers for his own personal gain. I know him, he tried to make me his apprentice. And he did nothing but use me and try and manipulate me."

Logan's arms jerked once more, his mind running wild. He tried once more to transform, this time into the form of a grizzly bear, raising his body up, only for nothing to happen as his body flopped back down onto the bed. "And you can't shift right now. We replaced that collar of yours on your neck with one that restrains your powers. Even then, it's still more humane than that strap Slade had on your neck, surprised you could breath with it on." Cyborg explained, his human eye glancing over to a faraway table, where the metal collar laid.

The changeling snarled upon seeing it. Some days, he hated the damn thing. The half-machine was right, sometimes it was hard to breath with it, and it being off explained why it was easier for him to swallow, but right now? He loved the damn thing. It was something made for him by his  **father.**  For  **him**  to wear. Plus, it was easy to hate the replacement when the replacement took away his powers.

"The point is, Garfield... you don't owe Slade a thing. He isn't your father, fathers don't treat their sons like he does to you." Robin continued, his knuckles squeezing down tighter on the bar, his knuckles sure to be pale white underneath his green gloves. And that's when Gar had it. His attempts to escape got the most vicious he had, his teeth were gritting, upper lip raised in a snarl. "How dare you? Without him, I'd be dead! He saved my life, gave me a home, food, training-" "That doesn't make him your father. With his intentions, it simply makes him a  _supplier_. He rubs your back with shelter, and you rub his by doing his dirty work."

"Fucking poetic coming from you, Grayson! Can you tell me who  **your**  dad is?" The apprentice growled, his rage joined in by slight satisfaction upon seeing Robin's eyes widen beneath his mask, even it was for a few seconds and he adjusted himself.

"Gray... what now?" Raven asked out on confusion, one of her brows perking upward and glancing questionably at Robin, who didn't meet her gaze. His other teammates joined in at looking at him, wondering much the same.  _He didn't even tell them. Who is **he**  to talk down to me?! _Gar thought, happy to see the embarrassed tint on the cheeks of the leader.

"That.. isn't important right now." He shakily acknowledged his teammates, before turning back to the restrained apprentice. "Batman is a far different man than Slade. Batman never had his own personal gain in mind when he took me in. He is a selfless man. Slade is nothing but selfish." The Boy Wonder replied, his brows far more furrowed, a hard pout on his face while Logan could easily match the look.

"Then why'd you leave him?"

"To become my own man."

"Your own man surrounded by teammates to do your bidding?"

The beeping of the Titans' communicators then interrupted the conversation, Cyborg being the first to check his and pouting once he saw what came up on his screen. "Uh.. Robin. It's Slade... and he wants Garfield." Victor told his leader, who let out a puff of air through his nostrils at the word, shutting his eyes firmly behind his mask before responding. "Tell him he can't have him."

_**"Robin... he has a hostage. He's threatening to kill them within the next 10 minutes unless we come with Garfield."** _

**Author's Note:**

> A/U: Hey there, haven't really seen anyone do this concept(with Beast Boy at least), so I thought I'd give it a shot! Was debating adding a 5th Titan just because, but changed it last second. Let me know if I should add one more in there. It'd probably be Kid Flash, but I'm open to suggestions.
> 
> Also the whole story isn't going to be told like this, this is just for the introduction, to sorta tell you what's different about Gar from the Teen Titans canon and what small changes have been documented.
> 
> But yeah, not sure when the first chapter will be up, but it'll contain lots of fighting, that's for sure.
> 
> Also it's a BBStar fic because I love BBStar. If an idea comes along in my mind where it'd best fit BBRae, I'll do that.


End file.
